In the spring of 2008, Cam called from WSU to tell us he was going to go to Okotoks, Alberta, Canada to play for the DAWGS! We laughed that he was a COUGAR and would now be a DAWG! We had to look up Okotoks – had never heard of it before. It was exciting in the next weeks to sign his contract, get his airline ticket, correspond with the owner of the team, John Ircandia, make plans with roommate Matt Hart, and to finally head out. He called or texted often. He couldn’t believe how this town of Okotoks embraced baseball and always told us of the great fans and the incredible stadium. This town packs the stadium to capacity on a regular basis! He always felt honored after a game to have a lineup of young kids wanting his autograph! It was incredible to hear the games via the internet – we rushed home to connect and listen as often as we could. It was hard not being there – up to this point in time we had only missed a handful of Cam’s games. The internet broadcasts kept us connected and we could then talk to him later about the game – always rehashing! We loved seeing newspaper articles and reading the write-up on the web about the games. We laughed as we saw the mustache he grew. We laughed at how the fans gave the mustache credit for the turnaround Cam had from not playing well for a stretch to suddenly getting a hit and rounding 3rd base – a fan stands and places his index finger over his lip and uses the other fingers to wave at Cam – signifying that mustache must have done the trick! Today – we get on a plane – bound for Okotoks. We are staying the weekend with Cam’s host family. We are joining the DAWGS 10 Year Alumni Reunion and meeting Cam’s teammates for the first time. We’re blessed by their gesture – to retire his number – in Okotoks he wore #17. While so much of the time will be bittersweet – we know will be able to change that word to sweet by the time we come home. I can’t have my son back on this earth….but I can feel the love he left behind in all those he loved. Cam Christian
Posted on: Thu, 03 Jul 2014 06:47:19 +0000