“What do you think of the transfer portal?”
It wasn’t the first question I was expecting from almost 105-year-old Sister Jean Delores Schmidt as I sat in her office at Loyola University on a warm Tuesday morning in Chicago, but then again sometimes when you just show up, you have to expect what isn’t on the menu that day.
There were several of those unexpected during this week in The Windy City, with the conversation with Sister Jean maybe bringing the most quiet takeaways (“I tell parents not to worry that much if young people question their faith, they will find God when the time is right,” ) but not the only surprises that came from showing up at Wrigley Field for this year’s Sports PR Summit, once again so well thought out and organized by our colleague Brian Berger and his small but might team for about 100 industry professionals who came from across the country to share and learn best practices. My trip to the Lakeshore on Tuesday to listen and learn from Sister Jean came along with an amazing tour of the Ramblers facility from the unofficial historian of Loyola, Tom Hitcho, who made the impromptu trip even more worthwhile and full of unexpected learnings.
However as much as Tuesday’s adventure was worthwhile, it was a chance encounter Monday that again reinforced why we show up and look for moments that bring unexpected encounters. Part of Monday’s event at Wrigley was the tour of the field during a sweltering midday break, and while some chose to forgo the walk to the field…you are a communications professional in sports, you have seen “The Friendly Confines” before what could happen this time that would make it different…those who not only went, but hung towards the back, got an added surprise. We had two tour ides…a young woman who led the group and filled us full of Wrigley history…and an older enthusiastic gentleman who brought up the rear and made sure no one got lost. He too pointed out some facts along the way, but it seemed like he was there to make sure no one wandered off onto the grass as the grounds crew readied the field. Well, if anyone should know his facts about baseball, it was the gentleman bringing up the rear.
My colleague Dan Conley and I stayed in the back of the group to chat up our other guide and see what else we could learn. What we learned was that unbeknownst to the young and the veteran communication types walking the warning track of Wrigley, a historian and an award-winning author was in our midst. Dan and I asked our guide about how he came to give tours at Wrigley, and he mentioned that he was a writer during his career…at ESPN, the long-forgotten newspaper The National sports daily, the Boston Globe and the Yahoo Sports and other places, and oh yeah, for many years he was the Official Historian of The Boston Red Sox. Of all the things I thought I would encounter on the trip, having the legendary Gordon Edes be our humble back-end tour guide in the hallowed ground of Wrigley was not on the list.
Amazing the things you find out when you ask.
So, while meeting Sister Jean was certainly a wow moment, the biggest surprise came on a warm Monday afternoon, trading stories and listening to tales from a legendary media career while everyone literally seated out a tour.
Gordon Edes and Sister Jean, an unexpected doubleheader of listening and learning. Who knew?
The serendipitous moments continue.
Now if we can just help the Loyola chaplain solve the portal.
Road Wanderings…Baseball, Cricket, Signed Walls and The Value of Sports ‘Normalcy’