Monthly Archives: August 2012

No More Preparation – It’s Game Time!

It was all smiles for my dad and I today as we marched into The Billie Jean King National Tennis Center with our grounds passes for Day 2 of the US Open! He let out a few childish giggles as he relished in what truly is his favorite holiday.

That’s right. Christmas is to small children as the US Open is to my father.

A lot of that rubbed off on me, I have to say. It was fantastic getting an up close and personal look at what I’ve been writing about for two months now. And let me just say – we got a LOT of good looks out of those grounds passes.

As I’ve said before, (“You Don’t Have $350 For a Seat at Arthur Ashe??”) you don’t need those fancy, shmancy tickets to see some of your favorite players on the court and off, (as was the case today – I’ll get to that in a minute).

We saw two fantastic matches at The Grandstand. The first was twelfth-seeded Ana Ivonovic versus 17 year old  Ukrainian qualifier, Elina Svitolina. Svitolina put up a good fight and was exciting to watch, but Ivonovic and her powerful, two-handed grip took the match at 6-3, 6-2.

Check out our awesome seats!

It was GREAT because moments later all of those empties were filled for the next match, which was Jo Wilfried Tsonga, fifth seeded, (who I listed as someone to keep a close eye on in “What Will Rafa’s Withdrawal Mean?“) versus Slovakian qualifier, Karol Beck. It was an exciting match. Tsonga took the first two pretty easily at 6-3, 6-1, but the their set got pretty thrilling when it went into a tiebreak at 6-6, Tsonga eventually taking it 7-6 (2), (when he did the “Jo Willie” signature victory dance).

Beck had a bad habit throughout the match of letting game after game after game get to deuce and have the advantage bounced back forth before letting it go to Tsonga. It seemed like it was always slipping through his hands – which it did entirely in the third set tiebreak.

Tsonga on the other hand was on fire, with one serve that clocked 137 mph. The most fantastic thing about his serve, however, is the fact that he throws it up so high and so far behind him, that you almost think he might collapse backwards at any moment while trying to strike the ball. Instead he does the opposite and manages to slam it with incredible force.

After the match, we strolled around the food court and eventually made  our way over to the practice courts. For those of you who have never been, there are five practice courts way in the back corner of Billie Jean, behind Arthur Ashe. Three sides are lined with incredibly tall shrubbery making it impossible to see through, the other has a small opening with a few bleachers set up. If you get to that opening at just the right time, you can see all the biggest names of the tourney practice only feet from you.

Well. This is where I must disclose some personal information. I do not mind admitting that I have developed quite the crush on Novak Djokovic over the course of this blog journey, (See my profile on him at “Djokovic the Djoker“).

Here’s some proof of my crush.

It is love.

Okay, not literally. BUT I had absolutely no expectation of seeing him in person, (hence this photo) even though I knew he was playing at Ashe at 7PM. However, fate, (which is trying to force us together) led me straight to the practice courts just half an hour before he was scheduled to arrive. The word hadn’t quite gotten out yet, so I got a great spot up against the fence, and watched at 4:45 as he entered the court. <img decoding=” class=”wp-smiley” style=”height: 1em; max-height: 1em;” />” class=”wp-smiley” style=”height: 1em; max-height: 1em;” /> <img decoding=” class=”wp-smiley” style=”height: 1em; max-height: 1em;” />” class=”wp-smiley” style=”height: 1em; max-height: 1em;” /> <img decoding=” class=”wp-smiley” style=”height: 1em; max-height: 1em;” />” class=”wp-smiley” style=”height: 1em; max-height: 1em;” />

Unfortunately, the players practicing at the time were running late, so he didn’t stay long. But he did take the time to stand behind Caroline Wozniacki and act as her ball boy. I don’t mean he just threw some balls back to her hitter – he fully took on ball boy mode, with the straight back, open palms, then hands behind his back. He winked, (right at me) the crowd let out a hearty laugh, and I sighed thinking, “What a Djoker”.

We got to see Andy Murray come by the practice courts as well, (his hair is WAY redder in person). Serena was set to come on at 4:45 but by 5:45 when we left, she still hadn’t appeared. Bummer.

Practice courts are definitely the way to go after you’ve seen the best matches of the day, (if you only have a grounds pass). I’m not sure everyone would agree with this, but it’s really thrilling to see the big names so close! I loved it.

 

Anyway – I had a fantastic time. For those of you headed out to Flushing in the next two weeks, have a blast. For those of you watching at home – get ready, because I’m betting that the men’s singles will be a fight to the death this year.

 

Signing off for now. Thank you to everyone who read, commented and shared this blog. It’s been an honor to “Prepare” you for this great tourney.

Posted in About Me, Ana Ivonovic, Andy Murray, Caroline Wozniacki, Elina Svitolina, Events, Jo-Wilfried Tsonga, Karol Beck, Novak Djokovic, Players, Serena Williams, The Billie Jean King National Tennis Center, The Grandstand, US Open | Comments Off on No More Preparation – It’s Game Time!

No More Preparation – It’s Game Time!

It was all smiles for my dad and I today as we marched into The Billie Jean King National Tennis Center with our grounds passes for Day 2 of the US Open! He let out a few childish giggles as he relished in what truly is his favorite holiday.

That’s right. Christmas is to small children as the US Open is to my father.

A lot of that rubbed off on me, I have to say. It was fantastic getting an up close and personal look at what I’ve been writing about for two months now. And let me just say – we got a LOT of good looks out of those grounds passes.

As I’ve said before, (“You Don’t Have $350 For a Seat at Arthur Ashe??”) you don’t need those fancy, shmancy tickets to see some of your favorite players on the court and off, (as was the case today – I’ll get to that in a minute).

We saw two fantastic matches at The Grandstand. The first was twelfth-seeded Ana Ivonovic versus 17 year old  Ukrainian qualifier, Elina Svitolina. Svitolina put up a good fight and was exciting to watch, but Ivonovic and her powerful, two-handed grip took the match at 6-3, 6-2.

Check out our awesome seats!

It was GREAT because moments later all of those empties were filled for the next match, which was Jo Wilfried Tsonga, fifth seeded, (who I listed as someone to keep a close eye on in “What Will Rafa’s Withdrawal Mean?“) versus Slovakian qualifier, Karol Beck. It was an exciting match. Tsonga took the first two pretty easily at 6-3, 6-1, but the their set got pretty thrilling when it went into a tiebreak at 6-6, Tsonga eventually taking it 7-6 (2), (when he did the “Jo Willie” signature victory dance).

Beck had a bad habit throughout the match of letting game after game after game get to deuce and have the advantage bounced back forth before letting it go to Tsonga. It seemed like it was always slipping through his hands – which it did entirely in the third set tiebreak.

Tsonga on the other hand was on fire, with one serve that clocked 137 mph. The most fantastic thing about his serve, however, is the fact that he throws it up so high and so far behind him, that you almost think he might collapse backwards at any moment while trying to strike the ball. Instead he does the opposite and manages to slam it with incredible force.

After the match, we strolled around the food court and eventually made  our way over to the practice courts. For those of you who have never been, there are five practice courts way in the back corner of Billie Jean, behind Arthur Ashe. Three sides are lined with incredibly tall shrubbery making it impossible to see through, the other has a small opening with a few bleachers set up. If you get to that opening at just the right time, you can see all the biggest names of the tourney practice only feet from you.

Well. This is where I must disclose some personal information. I do not mind admitting that I have developed quite the crush on Novak Djokovic over the course of this blog journey, (See my profile on him at “Djokovic the Djoker“).

Here’s some proof of my crush.

It is love.

Okay, not literally. BUT I had absolutely no expectation of seeing him in person, (hence this photo) even though I knew he was playing at Ashe at 7PM. However, fate, (which is trying to force us together) led me straight to the practice courts just half an hour before he was scheduled to arrive. The word hadn’t quite gotten out yet, so I got a great spot up against the fence, and watched at 4:45 as he entered the court. :) :) :)

Unfortunately, the players practicing at the time were running late, so he didn’t stay long. But he did take the time to stand behind Caroline Wozniacki and act as her ball boy. I don’t mean he just threw some balls back to her hitter – he fully took on ball boy mode, with the straight back, open palms, then hands behind his back. He winked, (right at me) the crowd let out a hearty laugh, and I sighed thinking, “What a Djoker”.

We got to see Andy Murray come by the practice courts as well, (his hair is WAY redder in person). Serena was set to come on at 4:45 but by 5:45 when we left, she still hadn’t appeared. Bummer.

Practice courts are definitely the way to go after you’ve seen the best matches of the day, (if you only have a grounds pass). I’m not sure everyone would agree with this, but it’s really thrilling to see the big names so close! I loved it.

 

Anyway – I had a fantastic time. For those of you headed out to Flushing in the next two weeks, have a blast. For those of you watching at home – get ready, because I’m betting that the men’s singles will be a fight to the death this year.

 

Signing off for now. Thank you to everyone who read, commented and shared this blog. It’s been an honor to “Prepare” you for this great tourney.

Posted in About Me, Ana Ivonovic, Andy Murray, Caroline Wozniacki, Elina Svitolina, Events, Jo-Wilfried Tsonga, Karol Beck, Novak Djokovic, Players, Serena Williams, The Billie Jean King National Tennis Center, The Grandstand, US Open | Comments Off on No More Preparation – It’s Game Time!

An MVP Doctor creates an MVP-worthy Foundation

For days, Dr. Thomas Haveron had been receiving a surplus of “Likes” to his foundation’s Facebook page. All of them were sent through the grapevine by a person named Ethan. “Ethan sent me!” is what Dr. Haveron remembers seeing continuously on his page. Finally, he decided to contact this mysterious Ethan character to thank him for all of the recognition he had been sending to his foundation. To Dr. Haveron’s dismay, Ethan had passed away the day before.

The foundation that Ethan so eagerly wanted his friends and relatives to become aware of is the Medicine Via Philanthropy Foundation, or simply the MVP Foundation. Founded by Dr. Thomas Haveron in 2011, the MVP Foundation has opened the doors for many terminally-ill children to receive treatment and care through grants and scholarships. The foundation has also made it possible for young adults to pursue medical careers through these funds.

The foundation’s niche has been to combine the doctor’s connections in the sports world to raise smiles and awareness, and it allows the children they are helping to have at last one day in which they forget all of the medical treatment they are going through while enjoying a Yankees game or even meeting some of the most popular figures in sports.

Although he is the official chiropractor of the Trenton Thunder, the Newark Bears, and of the New Jersey Nets (now the Brooklyn Nets) by day, his “baby” is his foundation. “My foundation is kind of like Make-A-Wish that helps kids’ wishes come true who are very very sick, whether it be to meet their favorite athlete, be a ball boy at a Miami Heat game, go to NASCAR races, and all kinds of other sporting events,” says Dr. Haveron. Elizabeth, the mom of a young girl that Dr. Haveron is helping through the MVP Foundation says the doctor is, “always putting a smile on her [my daughter’s] face. When he’s around, she kind of forgets of what’s going on in her life.”

The old saying, “it takes a village to raise a child,” particularly resigns with Dr. Haveron when he thinks back to his upbringing, and it’s a belief that has stuck with him and has been the base of why MVP came to be. He realized that people step up to the plate as a whole to tend to a young child when the child is at a vulnerable state. Dr. Haveron had the chance to not have to go through life alone, and he wants to have an opportunity to recreate that in his line of work.

At the age of 4, Dr. Haveron had a more close-knit relationship to his extended family than most would. Both of his parents passed away when he was just a young child; his mom from non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma, a form of cancer that is now 99.9 percent curable. He was raised by his aunts and uncles all of his life, not to mention a lot of help from his grandfather and the Catholic Church.

“Because of people like her [my mom] and a lot of the kids that I come into contact with who go through trial studies, they find cures to these cancers,” says Dr. Haveron.

He persevered through being a ward of the state of New Jersey, or in other words a foster child, and being on welfare until the age of 23, eventually deciding to pursue a career in medicine because of his need to want to help people.

“I raised a lot of money for many people over the years-millions of dollars over the course of 25 to 30 years-and people always asked me why I don’t start my own foundation,” which is what Dr. Haveron finally did just last year.

Since the inception of the MVP Foundation, Dr. Haveron has teamed up with many prominent foundations like Derek Jeter’s Turn 2 Foundation, the David Ortiz Children’s Fund, the Wounded Warrior Project, the American Cancer Society, and most recently, Robinson Cano’s RC24 Foundation, to raise money to help children in need.

“I’ve worked with Bernie Williams, Derek Jeter, Jorge Posada. I work with a lot of Yankees. I like baseball, I like helping people out, I like children, so anything that gets me involved with those things, pretty much I always try to get involved with.”

Dr. Haveron realizes that in order for the general community to find out about his foundation and to be able to raise the funds necessary for medical research, he is compelled to team up with big-name athletes who happen to be close friends of his.

“I’m not Robinson Cano, so I know that in order for me to raise money, I have to go out there and I have to let people know what I’m doing through these athletes because I’m not a superstar like he is. It’s easy for him because I mean c’mon, he’s Robinson Cano!”

 “I’ve worked with him, I’ve seen what he’s done, I helped him get ambulances [to donate in Robinson’s native of Dominican Republic], and I know what kind of person he is and he’s the most genuine, caring, giving person you’ll ever meet,” Dr. Haveron said of the New York Yankees second baseman.

Cano had similar praise for Dr. Haveron in a recent interview in New Jersey. “It means a lot to me,” Cano said, “A special friend to have like that spending his time, it’s just good the way he helps.”

The MVP Foundation comes across stories of children who need medical help through many different means. Once such story of a young brave girl named Leslie, who was diagnosed with neuroblastoma, came to Dr. Haveron’s from a friend of a friend.

At just 10 years old, Leslie and her family learned that she had neuroblastoma stage four, a malignant tumor that develops from nerve tissue which has now distributed to distant lymph nodes, liver, bone marrow, and other organs. This form of cancer turned a healthy little girl into a young child who “didn’t want to eat, didn’t want to do anything,” says her mom, Elizabeth.

“She changed a lot physically, she lost her hair, she didn’t feel comfortable with the way she looked.”

Through surgery and chemotherapy, Leslie has been improving from the state where she was when she was first diagnosed.

Leslie has gone to Yankees game with the doctor, has attended sporting events and met people that break her from the reality of cancer, even if just for that one instant.

To prize her on her tremendous improvement, the MVP Foundation granted Leslie and her family a three-day vacation package to Disney. Elizabeth can recall Leslie’s reaction to the big news just as vividly as when it happened.

“She said, ‘Mom! You’re not going to believe what he told me! Is he playing with me? Is he joking? Oh my God!’ Her eyes were about to pop out! She’s very excited and very happy. She’s very thankful for Dr. Haveron.”

Although any form of severe sickness like that of Leslie’s might cause an emotional and physical blunder in a child’s life, this half-Mexican, half-Dominican, high-spirited young girl has never lost hope. She has become the glue of her family, keeping everyone strong and hopeful. A lot of people complain about everyday misfortunes, but Leslie has stayed strong through her journey.

“She doesn’t let anyone give up,” says Elizabeth.

 “She’s an inspiration. I see someone different now than the person I saw last year. I’m so happy for her,” says Dr. Haveron of Leslie, now 12.

The MVP Foundation is currently sponsoring a young woman to go to medical school and she is presently in Thailand donating her free time to children to teach them personal hygiene. When she is done with school she will head to the Dominican Republic to donate a year of her time to a hospital picked by Robinson Cano, a feat that would not have been possible without the foundation’s help. She’s not the only one either. The MVP Foundation recently gave a scholarship to a young girl named Mabel Mayorga who dreamt of going to medical school but her career dreams were put to a halt when her father got into a car accident and was paralyzed. In 2010 the Association of American Medical Colleges estimated that by graduation, a medical students’ tuition will have cost him or her a minimum of $150,000. Mabel now has the funds to start school.

Dr. Haveron has this outlet in his foundation because the belief of the power of our youth growing to be young successful people who help younger children, is what he’s done in his life and career. He realizes that many children who aspire to be doctors might not have the means necessary available to them to attend medical school, so MVP has made it one of their missions to open these doors.

The MVP Foundation gets it funds from means like everyday donations, from money that is raised in any major event, and so on. It helps when he teams up with big-name foundations because the general public becomes aware of the little engine, the MVP Foundation, that is putting the whole show together. Dr. Haveron says, “At this point the most important thing right now is funds. Every penny that comes in goes out. Funds are our biggest asset at the moment.”

As far as Ethan goes, the young man who passed away a day before Dr. Haveron and the MVP Foundation contacted him to thank him for the notoriety, he dreamed of meeting a baseball player, a dream that the foundation helped come true before his passing. At the time, Dr. Haveron didn’t recall making such a big difference in Ethan’s life by just giving him the gift of meeting a famous athlete, but Ethan’s mom contacted the doctor to explain why Ethan did what he did through Facebook for the MVP Foundation.

The MVP Foundation has put smiles on many children’s faces since its inauguration, by teaming up with different areas in sports. A simple seat at a Yankees or Heat game, a meet-and-greet with a star athlete, or a check for medical school and the promise to work at a hospital picked out by a Major Leaguer, is what Dr. Haveron and his MVP Foundation have provided for ailing children and young adults. From overcoming being on welfare to teaming up with some of the most elite players in sports to change the lives of children, Dr. Thomas Haveron and his MVP Foundation have plenty to be proud of.

“It makes me happy to make other people happy. …If it wasn’t for the people who did the same for me, I wouldn’t be here today. This is the way I was raised. I try to help out as much people as I can. I just think it’s the right thing to do, you know?”

The MVP Foundation has become the “village” to children now, which Dr. Thomas Haveron’s family once became years ago.

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US Open Remains Fool-Proof for $ponsors, Players, and NYC Alike

Consistently, we hear tell of under-funded stadiums closing, teams being transferred to more profitable states, and the “bankruptcy” word being thrown around the offices of team owners.

One sporting event consistently delivers in profit, sponsorship, prize money and city revenue. That event is the US Open.

But why? As New Yorkers, we put teams like the Yankees and the Knicks on a pedestal. If you asked a random person on the street which NY sport brought the most money into the city, I doubt very many would say tennis. Yet, it’s true. VERY true.

Year after year, the attendance at the Open tends to grow. It averages 98 percent capacity, around 700,000 attendees per tourney. Last year it battled an impending hurricane Irene and still managed to bring in 650,000 spectators, sell out 11 sessions, and set a record for a final match, (Novak vs. Nadal) with 24,713 people in Arthur Ashe Stadium, (meant to hold an average of 23,200).

Even during the height of the recession in 2009, the US Open actually continued to set records for ticket sales.

But don’t think those tickets represent the money coming in to the city. The ticket money goes to the United States Tennis Association and the organizers of the United States Open. The sponsored money is usually flipped over to prize money. It’s the hospitality costs that cause a great surge for NYC’s revenue.

Many of the Open’s attendees are coming from overseas specifically for the tournament, which lasts two weeks long during prime vacation time that coincides with Labor Day weekend. The average Open-goer has a median income of $150,000 according to the USTA, so it’s safe to say they aren’t always staying in a Comfort Inn. They fill the high end, luxury hotels in the the surrounding areas and tend to stake them out for the entirety of the tourney. The best hotels are often filled up months in advance.

Between the hotels, restaurants, rentals and everything in between, New York City makes an average profit of 250 million dollars off of the US Open. That number grows every year.  That’s a lot of green.

Posted in Arthur Ashe Stadium, Events, Knicks, Novak Djokovic, Rafael Nadal, Stadiums, United States Tennis Association, US Open, USTC, Yankees | Comments Off on US Open Remains Fool-Proof for $ponsors, Players, and NYC Alike

US Open Remains Fool-Proof for $ponsors, Players, and NYC Alike

Consistently, we hear tell of under-funded stadiums closing, teams being transferred to more profitable states, and the “bankruptcy” word being thrown around the offices of team owners.

One sporting event consistently delivers in profit, sponsorship, prize money and city revenue. That event is the US Open.

But why? As New Yorkers, we put teams like the Yankees and the Knicks on a pedestal. If you asked a random person on the street which NY sport brought the most money into the city, I doubt very many would say tennis. Yet, it’s true. VERY true.

Year after year, the attendance at the Open tends to grow. It averages 98 percent capacity, around 700,000 attendees per tourney. Last year it battled an impending hurricane Irene and still managed to bring in 650,000 spectators, sell out 11 sessions, and set a record for a final match, (Novak vs. Nadal) with 24,713 people in Arthur Ashe Stadium, (meant to hold an average of 23,200).

Even during the height of the recession in 2009, the US Open actually continued to set records for ticket sales.

But don’t think those tickets represent the money coming in to the city. The ticket money goes to the United States Tennis Association and the organizers of the United States Open. The sponsored money is usually flipped over to prize money. It’s the hospitality costs that cause a great surge for NYC’s revenue.

Many of the Open’s attendees are coming from overseas specifically for the tournament, which lasts two weeks long during prime vacation time that coincides with Labor Day weekend. The average Open-goer has a median income of $150,000 according to the USTA, so it’s safe to say they aren’t always staying in a Comfort Inn. They fill the high end, luxury hotels in the the surrounding areas and tend to stake them out for the entirety of the tourney. The best hotels are often filled up months in advance.

Between the hotels, restaurants, rentals and everything in between, New York City makes an average profit of 250 million dollars off of the US Open. That number grows every year.  That’s a lot of green.

Posted in Arthur Ashe Stadium, Events, Knicks, Novak Djokovic, Rafael Nadal, Stadiums, United States Tennis Association, US Open, USTC, Yankees | Comments Off on US Open Remains Fool-Proof for $ponsors, Players, and NYC Alike