Pitch Perfect

Who would have thought that a whimsical Facebook post, Hurricane Irma evacuation, and an MLB charity program would come together in a perfect storm of events to make some items on a birthday bucket list come true? But that’s exactly how it came to be that Chad Goehring stood on the mound at Rogers Center on May 12 to throw out the first pitch in the Toronto Blue Jays game against the Boston Red Sox. You may know Chad Goehring through his position as a principal at Harrison Design, or from seeing him out with his lovely wife, Tara, at local community events, or as the devoted dad to two beautiful and fun-loving little blonde daughters. Maybe you attend church with them at St. Simons Community Church. He’s certainly no stranger around the island. But you might not have heard the story behind this very cool opportunity.

It all began last September, as Chad reflected on the last hours of his 30s. He took to Facebook and posted a “bucket list” detailing 30 things he hoped to accomplish in the next 40 years of his life. Some were silly, others quite attainable, and a few were admittedly pipe dreams. In it, he says, “Haven’t cared much about birthdays – but this one seems different!” Little did he know how true that was.

Hurricane Irma came to visit shortly after his birthday and the Goehrings evacuated to a friend’s home in Atlanta. Chad explains, “One night, over a bottle of wine, my buddy brings up that ‘bucket list’ and says, ‘Hey, you want to knock some things off of that list? I think I can take care of a couple. How would you like to go to Toronto?' ” You see, Chad’s list said he had never been to Canada or Mexico. He also said he hadn’t done anything with a professional sports team.

His friend had won a First Pitch Package at an auction supporting the Joe Torre Safe at Home Foundation, a non-profit organization founded by former MLB player and manager and current MLB chief baseball officer Joe Torre and his wife, Ali, in 2002. The charity provides services in schools to help children who have been traumatized by exposure to violence including domestic violence, child abuse, teen dating abuse, and sexual assault, in order to empower them to live healthy lives free of violence. Their mission is to educate to end the cycle of domestic violence and save lives. The First Pitch Package provides the opportunity to throw out a first pitch in each of the 30 stadiums over a period of 3 years. Chad’s friend, Joel, offered him the experience of doing that in Toronto.

On January 8, Stephanie Wright of the Blue Jays confirmed the game and date. Chad would get to show off his arm on May 12 in a game against the Red Sox. And so, the pressure was on. Chad says, “I was never a baseball pitcher or player. I practiced for the first time on February 11 at Mallory Park with a friend and his son. I put in a total of about six Sunday practices at Mallory Park, a few beach practices on Sea Island, and had a couple ‘instruction sessions’ at Halyards’ bar.” He adds, “I wasn’t that nervous until people, including my pastor, David Yarborough, who is an athlete himself, started sending me first pitch fail videos! I didn’t want to let everybody down with a bad pitch.”

As the big day got closer, the Blue Jays treated Chad like a king. He was given 4 free tickets to the game and also arranged for other friends and family members to come out, so he had a crew of 13 people there to cheer him on. In early May, Laura Spratt, the coordinator and head of game entertainment gave him some instruction about what to expect on game day. And on May 12, Chad got to attend batting practice on the field with Tom Robertson of client services, and David O’Reilly of the corporate partnership division. He was presented with a personalized Blue Jays jersey, with a number of his choosing (a sweet anniversary nod to Tara) and a team cap, as well as video and photographs of the first pitch. “I loved Toronto. Everything about the experience. They welcomed me and made me feel very comfortable.” At 4:00 p.m. the first pitch announcement was made, and Chad made his throw. Not only did it make it to the plate … it looked like a strike. Perfect!