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Thursday, September 8, 2005
A baseball surprise
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Forward Operating Base Michael, Iraq — Staff Sgt. Fran Ellison of Rex opened her mail last week to find an extra special surprise in one box — a baseball autographed by Braves second baseman Marcus Giles.
Moni Basu/AJCStaff Sgt. Fran Ellison shows off her baseball autographed by the Braves’ Marcus Giles.
“I was screaming,� said Ellison, who serves in the Macon-based Headquarters and Headquarters Company of the Georgia Army National Guard’s 48th Brigade Combat Team.
“I was totally surprised,� she said.
Ellison showed off her prized possession at the chow hall here to a bunch of jealous soldiers. Oh yeah, she was special.
Ellison had run into Giles in a Chicago hotel when she was there during a Braves-Cubs series. She has been a fan ever since.
Her colleagues at John Wieland Homes in College Park knew Ellison was a huge Braves fan and decided to do something special for her. Jeff Thomas sent her a letter explaining how he acquired the baseball.
“I’ve been working on some basement built-ins for Giles and I got him to sign a baseball for you. It was Dave’s idea,� he wrote, referring to another one of Ellison’s colleagues, Dave Wenegan.
One soldier at the mess hall suggested the excited food service manager ought to put her prized new possession up for auction on eBay. No way Ellison was parting with her souvenir. He could keep his steak dinner; she was keeping her baseball.
