GEORGE STEINBRENNER, THE BOSS

Notes of Concern…
….Jack Blair

GEORGE STEINBRENNER


George Steinbrenner, the famed owner of The New York Yankees, died in Florida on Tuesday, July 13th of a massive heart attack. Steinbrenner had been in declining health for some years.

I debated writing about George in a Massachusetts based column due to the vigorous rivalry between his Yankees and our Red Sox. I worried that any column about the Yankee owner might not be read!

The competition between the Yankees and the Red Sox was a good source of pride and revenue to both organizations and it made games between the two teams sell-out events. So I am going to write the column in the hope that Steinbrenner can be seen in a new light.

During George’s time as principal owner of the Yankees the Yankees won 11 AL pennants and seven World Series titles. His pride in his team, insistence on winning, and personal interest in the players and coaches certainly contributed to this record.

But George Steinbrenner was more than the owner of the fabled New York Yankees. A lot has been written about George, not all of it positive, but much remained unwritten and a lot of that had to do with his charitable nature and his dedication to his friends.

It is not my intention to focus on all of George’s good works but I do want to highlight one which I think serves as an example of his true nature.

Jim Fuchs, former Olympic Shot Putter and a friend of mine when I worked in New York City, partnered with George Steinbrenner in forming Silver Shield Foundation. George was also a friend of mine in those days so I was keenly aware of what the two of them were doing to help the widows and children of firemen and policemen lost in the line of duty. Here is a good description from one of the blogs:

“Jim Fuchs, formerly of Greenwich, is President of the Silver Shield. In 1982, he attended a policeman’s funeral with George Steinbrenner, who was moved by the ceremony and concerned for the officer’s children. Steinbrenner wondered who would pay for their college. George Steinbrenner began a fund for police officers’ children’s college and asked Jim Fuchs to run the Silver Shield Foundation. Today, the Silver Shield Foundation provides tuition and education benefits to the children and spouse of all members of the Fire Department( and Police Department) of the City of New York.”


I met George Steinbrenner when we both served on the Culver Educational Foundation Board. It was a small board and provided all of the members with the opportunity to create and sustain friendships with others who had enjoyed the experience of having attended Culver Military Academy, Culver Summer Schools, or one of the Culver camps.

I found George to be not only dedicated to Culver but a lot of fun to be around. Of course, with his background in business, politics and sports he had a lot of stories to tell. When we first met I was working and living in Pittsburgh, PA.

When my career took me to New York City, one of the first invitations I received was from George Steinbrenner. He invited me to join him in his private box for one of the Yankees games.

Now this was quite a welcome surprise from a young executive from the Midwest new to the Big Apple. When I arrived I found that the box was spacious enough to welcome a sizeable number of George’s friends. United States Senator Birch Bayh was there, as was the owner of the Fugazy limousine company and Tom Carvell of ice cream fame.

It was a memorable night.

Over the course of years, I made a few more visits to George’s box at Yankee Stadium and was always treated equally to those of much more stature. That was his nature.

When he heard my parents were visiting, he arranged for me to host them at Yankee Stadium and to entertain them in the dining club there. On another occasion, George had my whole family to the stadium and arranged for us to sit behind the Yankees dugout. My children were young then and it made an enormous impression on them.

When I moved to Massachusetts and was involved in fund raising, George sent me a signed Yankees baseball to be auctioned off in support of The Winchendon School. It brought the School $1000.

During a year in which my mother’s health was declining and she was in a local nursing facility, George sent her a letter to post on her door, signed by him, complimenting her on her bravery in being a Yankees fan in Red Sox Nation!

These are a few examples of the George Steinbrenner I knew. A man not much like his public image. While I admire the accomplishments of George Steinbrenner the team owner and the businessman, it is the personal George Steinbrenner, the philanthropist, friend to so many, and kind man that I remember today and that I will miss tomorrow.

The Red Sox and the Yankees will continue their rivalry but I suspect it will never be quite the same.