The Splendid Splinter would be proud!
Published January 28, 2021
By STEPHEN MARTELLUCCI
NORTH READING — Joe LoRusso, who moved to North Reading back in 2003, is the Ted Williams Baseball Camp Alumni Coordinator and has been coordinating its alumni activities for the past eight years.
Every two years they have an auction with sports memorabilia to raise money for the Jimmy Fund to fight cancer. Williams, a Red Sox legend, was a huge supporter of the Jimmy Fund.
The camp, located in Lakeville, operated from 1958 to 1986. Usually, they have a luncheon at the Loon Pond Lodge site down in Lakeville. However, due to the COVID-19 crisis last year, they had to get creative.
“In 2018 we had our summer luncheon and people paid $30 to participate and have their meal,” explained LoRusso, who works as the sports equipment manager at St. John’s Prep in Danvers. “We would then hold the auction and we raised a little over $5,000.”
When the virus first hit in March, LoRusso, along with his other three co-directors, decided to do the auction on Facebook.
They did one auction item a week from April to the end of August and they ended up raising nearly $6,000, which is a record.
“It took a lot more work and dedication to do it,” recalled LoRusso, 60. “Along with Facebook, I also used Twitter to get the word out. It is amazing what social media has become.”
A majority of the items were donated by KBK Sports up in New Hampshire.
Other Lakeville-area restaurants also had nights where a portion of what they would gross would go to the charity.
“A lot of the local business stepped up to help us including some banks,” pointed out LoRusso.
In North Reading, LoRusso left canisters at Eastgate Liquors, the Lobster Claw and Mario’s Pizza.
“Those business were also very helpful,” acknowledged LoRusso.
LoRusso, who grew up in Somerville, started going to the camp as a teenager in 1975. He continued going to the camp every year thereafter until it closed in 1986 as he coached and became a counselor there as well.
In 1986, the town of Lakeville bought the property and it is now run by the town’s Park Department.
Has raised over $20,000 to date
In the eight years that he has been in charge of the alumni they have now raised over $20,000 for the Jimmy Fund, which makes him very proud.
LoRusso, who is married and has an 8-year-old son, hopes that they can go back to their traditional luncheon for the next Jimmy Fund benefit event in 2022.
