Washington County Enterprise-Leader
Baseball Art Heals
FARMINGTON BOY VISITS GRANDMOTHER DURING TREATMENT
FARMINGTON — As of Thursday, 10-year-old Tristan Hall, had raised $248 selling his paintings including baseball art and working a lemonade stand in Farmington.
“It’s the most money I ever had in my life,” Tristan said.
Tristan and his friend, Ethan Mallard, 15, sold lemonade along with a series paintings recently completed by Tristan as a fundraiser for Tristan’s “Meme,” his grandmother Deb Majors, who has been receiving cancer treatments at Houston. Majors, 64, is battling stage four lung cancer and needs three different types of chemotherapy. One chemo that insurance has not approved costs $10,000-per-treatment and that prompted Tristan’s fundraising efforts. That particular chemotherapy treatment is up to 40 percent more effective.
“It can add five years to her life,” said Tristan’s dad, Josh Hall, who explained that he doesn’t discuss the financial aspects of the ongoing treatment with his son, but Tristan overheard a conversation and wanted to get involved.
The Los Angeles Dodger baseball cap atop Tristan Hall’s head contrasted with a hand-painted replica of the Los Angeles Angels’ team logo he had for sale.
When asked, the 10-yearold Farmington resident said he plays for a traveling 11 & under ball team, the Lindsey Dodgers; while the Los Angeles Angels are his favorite Major League Baseball team. That answer satisfied curiosity about the painting of the Angels’ team logo featuring a halo wrapped around the upper portion of a red “A” accompanied by the inscription “Mike Trout #27” in Tristan’s handwriting. Trout is Tristan’s favorite player.
The history of the two Major League Baseball franchises is intertwined.
Tristan’s cap represents professional baseball’s Dodgers, based in Los Angeles, Calif.
The Dodgers belong to the National League, competing in the West division. The historic franchise established in 1883 in Brooklyn, N.Y., introduced the world to Jackie Robinson, the first African-American to play in Major League Baseball, during the 1947 season. The franchise moved to Los Angeles before the 1958 season playing four seasons at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum before moving to their current home of Dodger Stadium in 1962.
Their crosstown rivals, the Los Angeles Angels based in Anaheim, Calif., belong to the American League, competing in the AL West. The Angels’ franchise, which has been known as the California Angels, Anaheim Angels and currently Los Angeles Angels, was established as an expansion team in 1961 by Gene Autry, the team’s first owner
According to Pete Donovan’s 2012 book, “Under the Halo: The Official History of Angels Baseball,” Autry agreed to buy the franchise name “Los Angeles Angels” for $350,000, as a tribute to the original Los Angeles Angels, a Minor League franchise, which competed in the Pacific Coast League and played in South Central Los Angeles from 1903 to 1957.
Autry bought the rights to the Angels name from Walter O’Malley, then owner of the Dodgers, who acquired the PCL minor league franchise from Philip K. Wrigley, owner of the parent club, Chicago Cubs. That transaction was part of the Dodgers’ move to Southern California. The name purchase proved a good marketing tool for Autry because it associated his expansion team in Major League Baseball with a popular Pacific Coast League team and continued the history of the franchise. Once the Angels became a Major League Baseball franchise, some players from the Angels’ PCL team were added to the roster in 1961. The team has played home games at Angel Stadium since 1966.
On Friday, Tristan traveled to Houston where he met his sister, Grace, 17, who attends high school in North Carolina and will be a senior this fall. The siblings were going to check on “Meme” and stay with family in Houston
Baseball runs in the family almost like a part of their DNA.
Tristan’s older brother, Sam, 19, will be a sophomore at Clemson this fall. Sam played left field last season for the Tigers after being recruited at shortstop.
“He is Tristan’s hero,” Josh said.
The family wears personalized wristbands proclaiming Philippians 4:13 “I can do all things through Christ which strengthens me,” as part of their ongoing prayer vigil on behalf of Majors.
Monday evening Tristan reported via text the amount he had raised had risen to $400. Since his trip to Houston interrupted manning a lemonade stand, Tristan has sold paintings online. Of his “Meme,” he said, “She’s doing good.”