Transcript
0:01 ladies and gentlemen I present Baseball Hall of Famer and American Sports icon Mr Hank Aaron thank you whenever somebody says such nice things
0:33 about me I think of a certain school teacher I heard about on the first day of every school turn she always sent a note home with each student in the class the note read dear parent if you promise not to believe everything your child say happened at school I promise not to believe everything he says happen at home of course I want you to believe
1:03 everything the commissioner just said about me thank you president PL members of the Board of Trustees members of The Faculty staff and student body members of the distinguished graduating class of 2012 parents family members and Friends of the classes ladies and
1:34 gentlemen thank you so very much for your kind invitation to allow me to share this occasion with you I should tell you that I was far more comfortable standing at home plate at Old County Stadium waiting for a fast ball than I am at this moment standing behind this podium to deliver the commencement address at Marquette University I must say this is a bit out
2:06 of character for me but I'm honored by your invitation I have known of Marquette since my early days in baseball in fact I passed your campus many times walking to County Stadium in 1954 my rookie year with the Milwaukee Brees I had had no car so I walked a three or so miles from the ster hotel to the
2:37 ballpark I was very much in awe of what I've saw at Marquette then and I must say I still am in fact you have been inner woman in the wonderful memories that I have of Milwaukee and the people of Wisconsin a little town called o Clair in the city of Milwaukee help to shape my dreams and my life and help to mold me into the man I am
3:07 today I can never forget that here I found acceptance encouragement self-confidence and lifelong friends at the invitation of those friends Mr Alan bud celic I return here to play out my career with the Milwaukee Brewers after breaking babe roof home run
3:39 record I concluded my 23 years in baseball hitting my last home run number 755 at County Stadium in 1976 today I return to Milwaukee to celebrate with you the realization of your dream to earn your
4:10 degree from Arad University let me first congratulate you for staying the course Mrs Elena Roosevelt once said that the future belongs to those who believe in the beauty of their dreams so so my message to you today comes from the word of the poet Langston Hughes and I quote hold fast your dream for when dream die life is like a
4:43 broken wing bird that cannot fly today I want to challenge you to hold fast to your dreams for I believe that our hopes and dreams are a motivating factor in our desire to climb the highest mountain the spring season of the year is a perfect time for The Rebirth of dreams like nature itself Springs give
5:14 us New Hope and a new beginning in Baseball spring training represents a new season of Hope and anticipation of a new opportunity to win a championship likewise spring commencements provide new opportunities for you to continue to climb the latter of success your years of hard work and study here at Marquette are cause for
5:48 celebration the goal of Our Lives is to develop our full potential and realize our dreams for most of us the realization of our dream dreams requires a strong unyielding commitment hard work and determination the 1921 Nobel Prize winner in literature and TOA France put it this way to accomplish great
6:20 things we not only act we might we must not only act but also dream not only plan but also believe my late friend Dr Benjamin e ma educator and president of moh house College in Atlanta Georgia often said and I quote the tragedy of life doesn't lie in not reaching your goal the tragic lies in having no goal
6:51 to reach it isn't a Calamity to die with dreams unfulfilled but it is a Calamity not to dream Dr M went on to say that it is not a disgrace to not reach the stars but it is a disgrace to have no stars to reach far not failure but low aim is sin
7:24 unquote from the time I was a young kid in mobel Alabama I dreamed of playing baseball in the major leagues being a black kid of course that was an impossible dream it was not until Jackie Robertson broke the color line that I began thinking that maybe if I worked hard enough I could realize my dream of playing in the major
7:54 leagues breaking into big leagues in the days of segregation was extremely hard there were many times when I wanted to give up but I kept going and I learned that if you want something bad enough you have to make the necessary sacrifices to get it you learn to navigate the circumstances and accept the fact that failure is not an option for you I had to believe in myself and my
8:24 ability to compete during this season the offseason I worked hard at staying focused staying healthy and keeping my body fit I set goals at beginning of the each season and each time I achieve one goal it gave me the confidence to reach for a higher goal I learned to be patient when I got into a slump learned to wait for my pitch before I swing at the pitcher
8:58 pitch the temp temptations that exist today to take Shortcuts To Success was not around in my days so I can't say how valid my response is to the often asked questions about steroids but I like to think that I would have rejected any kind of drugs that did not meet the approval of the team doctor
9:37 I talk to a lot of kids today who dream of playing baseball what I said to them what I said to all of them is simple to stay away from drugs that will harm your body be patient work hard to develop your skills there is no substitute for excuses hard work and determination there are absolutely no acceptable acceptable shortcut to
10:10 success in life cheating for whatever reason and in any feel is wrong and is at best a temporary solution to a greater problem at some point quick fixes will come back to hunt you and it might destroy your body and
10:41 your dreams great or small your accomplishments thus far will follow you for years to come for what you do with your life and how you do it is not only a reflection on you but on your family and all those institutions that have helped to make you who you are my mother used to said to me when I was a boy don't forget you are my
11:12 son don't bring no shame to this family and by the look on her face when she said it I knew she meant it and I knew what the consequences would be if I misbehaved when I retired from baseball in 1976 I had accomplished everything that I set out to accomplish I felt good about myself and my
11:43 accomplishments but my reflexes had slowed my eyesight was demoned and my body was signaling every time I went to the plate that it was time to quit and so I did my success in baseball helped me realize realiz my responsibility to give back to my community to that end my wife Billy and I founded the Hank Aon Chasing the Dream Foundation in
12:14 1994 with the help of my friends bud celic and Joe Kennedy and many others of course we have provided scholarships assistance to some 850 kids and and young adults to help them chase their dream thanks to the Milwaukee Brewers we
12:44 have for the past 10 years continued to provide assistance to 23 of so dream chases in the Boys and Girls Club here in Milwaukee through three years ago with the thank you three years ago with the generous assistance of commissioner buttsy we started a new program in partnership with the national Boys and Girls Club called 44 forever this program will allow us to
13:16 assist 44 kids a year between the ages of 12 and 17 in prepu through this program of giving back to our community we are are a living we are living our Dream you are among the fortunate few to have been educated by some of the best Minds in high education you must now pass on to Future Generations Life Lessons Learned
13:48 here our country is in great need of your talent and your services in good times and in bad times you will be EXP expected to make the best of the educational opportunity that you have been given so I challenge you to hold fast to your dreams and always remember as one writer has said each of us has something unique to offer their world if only we have the courage to
14:21 dream and the determination to make our dreams come true congratulation to all and may God bless each and every one of you thank you