DECEMBER 12, 2007

SANTA MARIA TIMES

PB cancer center gets $750K gift
By April Charlton/Senior Staff Writer

Santa Claus came early to Arroyo Grande Community Hospital this year, leaving behind $750,000 that will be used to create the Coastal Cancer Center and Diagnostic Center in Pismo Beach.
The Arroyo Grande Community Hospital Foundation announced Tuesday it has accepted $750,000 in donations from three local families to help create a new cancer center in southern San Luis Obispo County.
The donation - three individual contributions of $250,000 - is the largest financial gift ever received by the hospital and was given by Robin and Stephanie Ventura, Nick and Kathy Tompkins and Carrol and Joan Pruett.
“There is hardly a family anywhere that hasn't been touched by cancer,” said Stephanie Ventura, a Santa Maria native. “Robin and I believe the people in the Arroyo Grande area deserve a cancer treatment center that coordinates all aspects of a cancer patient's prescribed treatment.
“It's humbling and actually an honor to be given the means to be a part of this,” she added, noting that her father was diagnosed with cancer just last month. “What better way to support your community and touch everyone? It's mutually beneficial.”
Robin Ventura, also a Santa Maria native and a former Major League Baseball player, echoed his wife's comments.
“Stephanie and I are honored to be part of this,” Robin said. “We're humbled by the doctors (who put this together) and trust these people will be well taken care of.”
Just because the Five Cities is a small community doesn't mean its doctors and residents don't deserve a state-of-the-art cancer center and the resources such a facility will provide, he added.
The Tompkinses and Pruetts also said they were humbled to be part of creating a cancer center in the South County.
“We know the value of having something like this available in our community,” said Carrol Pruett, former president of Mid-State Bank & Trust. “We're extremely pleased to be able to jump in and help create an asset for our community.”
The combined donations are being used to jumpstart a campaign to create the Arroyo Grande Community Hospital's Coastal Cancer Center and Diagnostic Center at the Pismo Beach Medical Plaza, 921 Oak Park Boulevard, adjacent to the Coastal Surgical Institute.
Hospital administrators and foundation board members hope to raise $1.5 million for the campaign and have the new center open by spring 2008.
Dan Cashier, foundation board president, said the three donations have already spurred others in the community to “make major donations” to the campaign.
“It's unbelievable the generosity of this community,” Cashier said. “This is going to be one of the best cancer centers in the nation.”
The center will promote a multidisciplinary team approach to cancer care, allowing physicians to coordinate a patient's treatment plan, resulting in better patient outcomes and a more comprehensive healing experience, organizers said.
It will also provide cancer patients and families access to the most current cancer information and innovative treatment options, featuring the latest in diagnostic technology, including digital mammography with stereo-tactic biopsy, MRI and PET/CT scanning.
Patients will also be provided with ancillary services such as nutritional education, spiritual counseling and other social support at the center, according to hospital administrators.
“This is truly a great day for health care in our community,” said Rick Castro, Arroyo Grande Community Hospital president, adding that without the support of the community, the hospital wouldn't be able to see a cancer center come to fruition.
Cancer is the second leading cause of death in the United States, and the hospital expects to treat at least 1,500 new cancer patients in 2008, Castro said.
“These are the right people, this is the right time and the right project,” he added. “Their response has been truly amazing.”
Arroyo Grande Community Hospital is a nonprofit medical center that was established in 1961 and is now owned by Catholic Healthcare West, the largest Catholic health care system in the western United States.
December 12, 2007

May 30, 2007........Robin's gonna be on TV!

ESPNU To Televise Entire San Diego Regional USD's game on Friday against Fresno State begins at 8:00 p.m. May 29, 2007

SAN DIEGO, Calif. - All of the possible seven games in the San Diego Regional will be televised live nationally by ESPNU, and will be one of just two Regionals broadcast by ESPN.

The sports network is sending broadcasters Dave Cohen (play-by-play), ROBIN VENTURA (color for the day games) and Barry Larkin (color for the night games), respectively live from Tony Gwynn Stadium.

No. 8 national seed University of San Diego is hosting Fresno State University, Cal State Fullerton and the University of Minnesota in its first-ever Regional from June 1-4, 2007.

June 1 Game 1 at 4:00 p.m. (Cal State Fullerton vs. Minnesota) Game 2 at 8:00 p.m. (San Diego vs. Fresno State) June 2 Game 4 at 4:00 p.m. Game 5 at 8:00 p.m. June 3 Game 6 at 4:00 p.m. Game 7 at 8:00 p.m. June 5 (if necessary) Game 8 at 8:00 p.m.

There will be at least 50 minutes in between games, start times for the second games of each day are scheduled to change.

March 7, 2007......The Mets Mailbag over at Mets.com had a question concerning the All Time Gold Glove Team. I wonder who was picked for thirdbase? :) Robin of course- duh!

March 4, 2007......I was in Port St. Lucie yesterday for the Mets/Dodgers game and look what I came upon when I entered the stadium.......

As far as any news, the only thing that's popped up is a Grand Single mention here.

Feb 17, 2007......I found these pictures, but Im not sure exactly when they were taken. Here's the caption that went along with them:

ESPN Night at Elks Field in Santa Maria. The San Luis Blues game with the Santa Maria Indians. CJ and Woz along with Robin Ventura—former major leaguer and long time local. Play by play by Robin Ventura and Mark Miller.

Feb 16, 2007......I'm ashamed of myself, I havent updated since MAY 05! Wow- time flys. Anyways, Robin made an appearnce @ SoxFest recently and it looks like he may turn up @ Spring Training in Arizona. Also, there was a nice mention @ Mets.com on Valentine's Day about him too:

02/14/2007 10:00 AM ET Expressions of love for baseball
Cupid's arrow finds its way into hearts of baseball aficionados
By Marty Noble / MLB.com
NEW YORK -- Over the years, the Mets have had a number of players whose affection for the game was evident in how they approached the game and acted in the dugout and on the field: Mike Cameron, Kelvin Chapman, Ron Gardenhire, Buddy Harrelson, Howard Johnson, Ed Lynch, Barry Lyons, Brent Mayne, Joe McEwing, Bill Pulsipher, Desi Relaford, Jose Reyes, Ray Sadecki, Ron Swoboda, Robin Ventura, Mookie Wilson and David Wright.

If you want to read the rest of that article you can find it HERE.

Here's another nice story to enjoy:

02/09/2007 2:03 PM ET
Ventura a central figure in Sox family
Former player reunites with cancer patient, may assist at camp
By Scott Merkin / MLB.com

CHICAGO -- Ozzie Guillen sat at a table in a private area of the Palmer House Hilton a few hours before the start of SoxFest 2007, flanked by general manager Ken Williams and a handful of members from the Chicago media.
A plethora of questions were asked of Guillen and Williams over a 32-minute period, with the flow only briefly interrupted by the arrival of a familiar face strolling past the interview session, causing Guillen to quickly move from his seat and greet his old friend with a bear hug. With a little longer hair and more of a California look, the recipient of Guillen's hug wasn't immediately as recognizable to everyone else.

But it would be hard for Guillen to forget Robin Ventura, the man who helped him form an airtight defensive seal on the left side of the White Sox infield from 1990-97. In fact, Guillen and the White Sox as an organization would be thrilled to see Ventura around the team far more often than simply for the big fan weekend each year.

"I love him and would love to work with him again," said Guillen of Ventura. "He's one of my favorites, and he really knows about baseball. He will help out anyone because he knows about the game."

Guillen's desire to have Ventura assist in some sort of unofficial coaching capacity might have an extra special push behind it, but that expressed interest for former players to rejoin their South Side baseball family has not been limited to the affable Gold Glove third baseman. At SoxFest, Guillen mentioned how he personally has extended an invitation for Hall of Fame catcher Carlton Fisk to serve as a coach during Spring Training and added that one-time White Sox players such as Scott Fletcher (1983-85, 1989-91) and Tim Hulett (1983-87) already are scheduled to be with the White Sox for some of the upcoming weeks in Tucson.

Of course, Guillen's actual coaching staff already is chocked full of ex-White Sox players such as Harold Baines, Joey Cora and Greg Walker or members such as Don Cooper and Art Kusnyer, who have been with the organization for two decades. It's a family feel under the leadership of chairman Jerry Reinsdorf, Williams and Guillen, a sense of camaraderie not lost on one of the franchise's most famous third basemen.

During an interview at SoxFest, the 39-year-old Ventura explained how that family feel extended to White Sox executive vice president Howard Pizer, inviting him to attend games throughout the playoffs during the team's historic World Series title run in 2005.

"That was a lot of fun because you know all these people," said Ventura of following the 2005 championship squad. "It's like your family, because you've known them for so long and they are inviting you to come hang out for a while.

"Coming back to coach always sounds great. If I ever did, obviously this would be the first call I would make. Where I'm at and where my kids are at, it's not a perfect time for me to do that right now."

Adding Ventura in any capacity would be bringing in a truly valuable asset. Ventura's on-field resume features 16 Major League seasons, six Gold Gloves, 294 home runs, 18 grand slams and 37 postseason games. Those numbers, which could put Ventura in serious Hall of Fame consideration, pale in comparison to the respect and admiration he earned from teammates, fans and media alike through his driven but good-natured approached to the game.

In fact, if professional athletes truly are not supposed to be role models, as has been hypothesized at times previously, then Ventura must have missed that particular memo. Take a recent reunion involving Ventura as an example.

During SoxFest 1997, prior to Ventura's second-to-last season with the White Sox, he was introduced through the Make-A-Wish Foundation and the White Sox Christine O'Reilly to Billy Rivard, a young man from south suburban Orland Park who had been diagnosed with acute lymphoblastic leukemia. Rivard enjoyed the private meeting with his favorite player, asking him questions about everything from his favorite color to his favorite movie.

Little did Rivard know that he was forming a lasting friendship and obtaining a famous ally in his brave battle. Even when Ventura moved on to the Mets and the Yankees, he remained in contact with Rivard and his family and had Rivard visit when he came back to Chicago.

Now in remission for seven years and a sophomore at Sandburg High School, entertaining thoughts about becoming a doctor or a teacher while attending college at Duke or Michigan, Rivard and his family met up with Ventura once again on the first day of the most recent SoxFest.

"He always gave me words of encouragement, and always went out of his way to say hi and spend time with me," said Rivard, who remembers playing countless games of catch with Ventura at Comiskey Park and getting phone calls of support, even if he was too sick to talk at the time. "He's the best. He's such a nice person."

"You become connected. You just do," Ventura added. "If he was going into surgery, his dad would call and let me know he was going into surgery, and I would talk to him a little bit. You just try and say and do what you can to make him forget about what's happening for five minutes. When he was at the field, you know the last thing on his mind was that he was sick."

Ventura formed a very early connection with his young fans through visits to Children's Memorial Hospital as a White Sox rookie, long before he was famous and married with four children. He gained great appreciation for what families went through as their children were being treated and takes away a great inner feeling when an inspirational story such as Rivard's plays out.

The devotion to his own kids stands as one of the primary reasons why Ventura currently won't entertain thoughts of becoming a full-time coach. He's having too much fun with his family to join the White Sox extended group.

For now, Ventura's involvement includes SoxFest, a possible trip to Spring Training this year and his ongoing connection to people he has touched over the past two decades.

"I hope I will still be managing when his time comes," said Guillen with a laugh of Ventura. "I ask former players every time I see them to come join the team in Spring Training. The more former players they see, the better for the kids."

"Hopefully, Ozzie coaches for eight more years," added Ventura with a smile, quipping that he wanted whatever job is currently being held by Ozzie Guillen Jr. "People think coaches just show up, but it's hard work and these guys do a great job. I don't know if I'm at that point."