By By Lydia Grimes
It is said that reading is contagious and Atmore Public Library Director Cathy McKinley hopes the community comes down with the reading bug.
McKinley believes the library’s new program, aimed to encourage everyone in the town to read a book, is the right cure. And to help those who are indecisive on their book choice, McKinley and her staff have made the choice for everyone.
The program began Feb. 1 and will finish on May 12. On that day, the readers will come together at the library to discuss the book.
McKinley said they have plans to offer a weekly activity for children, all pertaining to baseball.
Every little boy dreams of playing in the “Big Leagues” someday, but few ever make it. Some kids have their dreams dashed and never recover, while others turn their lives around to focus on something else.
The book is about the life of one of those little baseball players who was so good, he was noticed by the Brooklyn Dodgers. Written by his son, Gary Moore, the book draws from the life of Warren Eugene Moore.
According to a press release, Eugene Moore grew up on a farm in Sesser, Ill. If he wasn’t in school or doing farm chores, he was always playing baseball. Even though he was smaller than his team members, they always liked to have him play because of his natural talent. His teammates knew he was capable of hitting the ball farther than anyone else, an excellent catcher, throw the ball from his position on his knees. and could hit the ball “a country mile.”
He was so talented the Brooklyn Dodgers heard about him and he was on his way to becoming a Dodger player.
His career hit a snag before he even got started, with the bombing of Pearl Harbor. Moore played ball with the U.S. Navy until he and his team got called to come back to the United States to perform a special and top secret mission. They were to guard the German soldiers that were taken off their U-boat as prisoners. He had no baseball team there and he persuaded his commander to let him teach the Germans about baseball. All of this information came as quite a surprise to his son, Gary S. Moore, the day before his father died. Gary Moore was on the verge of beginning his own career playing baseball, and his father thought is was time that he told his story.
As for the future of the community-wide reading program, McKinley said it all weighs on the first one.
For more information call the library at 368-5234.