GoHeels Exclusive: Tar Heels Celebrate Buck Leonard, 100th Anniversary Of Negro Leagues Baseball
February 28, 2020 | Baseball, Featured Writers
By Pat James, GoHeels.com
Of all the wonderful memories from Mike Fox's time in and around baseball, one that he cherishes most came away from the field, back when he was the head coach at N.C. Wesleyan College in Rocky Mount, N.C.
Fox was early in his tenure with the Battling Bishops when he visited the home of one of Rocky Mount's finest, Buck Leonard. A member of the Homestead Grays for 17 seasons and a 1972 Baseball Hall of Fame inductee, Leonard is considered one of the best players not only in the history of the Negro Leagues, but in all of baseball. And over the course of three hours, he shared with Fox several tales from his storied career. He also showed him his memorabilia.
"It was one of the greatest moments that I've had," Fox said.
Memories of that visit came rushing back Tuesday, when Fox's Tar Heels honored the 100th anniversary of Negro Leagues Baseball during their game against North Carolina A&T.Â
The brainchild of Executive Associate Athletic Director Larry Gallo, the celebration featured videos of Negro Leagues greats such as Satchel Paige and Rube Foster in between innings. Both teams also wore patches designed in Kansas City, Mo., with and for the Negro Leagues Baseball Museum to commemorate the centennial anniversary of the Negro Leagues.
The highlight of the day came before the game even started, though, as Rose Hunter and Geoffrey Hunter, one of Leonard's stepdaughters and grandsons, respectively, were recognized on the field, along with four boys involved with the Buck Leonard Association (BLA).
Established in 1999, the BLA coordinates inner-city minority youth community sports and cultural programs in Leonard's hometown of Rocky Mount. Rose, the executive director of the BLA, said she started the organization upon returning to Rocky Mount and noticing how few kids were playing baseball.
"The kids didn't know about baseball; they only knew basketball and football," she said. "Therefore, there were very few coaches, black coaches, for baseball. Our thought was, 'OK, we'll do historic preservation, promote Buck and all of that.'"
Soon after, the Buck Leonard RBI baseball league launched. But over time, the BLA has become about much more than baseball.
With the help of its all-volunteer staff, the BLA has promoted learning opportunities through STEM (science, technology, engineering and math) education. That's been headlined by the development of the organization's full diamond math and science education program, which focuses on teaching children through physical activities.
More recently, the BLA has started encouraging children in Rocky Mount to write and illustrate their own stories. It's also creating the Buck Leonard New Freedom Children's Library, which will be the home of about 1,500 books, including several about the Negro Leagues. Rose said she hopes the library will help children learn their history.
"How can you tell who you are if you don't know your history?" she said. "It's not left to the schools to teach you; it's left to the family and the community. So, it's an inner-city community library. Children learn to read while learning about themselves."
Naturally, they also learn about Leonard. And while Tuesday's game served as a chance to honor his legacy, Rose said it also provided another learning opportunity for the four boys who traveled with her and Geoffrey.Â
"I think the kids are in awe of all that takes place," Rose said. "They think we're just coming to watch the game. They think all it is is the players come to Carolina and play ball and that's it. But what about all the preparation that goes into all that? Larry has been very gracious and taken us around. It's been a wonderful day for us all."