Like It Is

Fundraiser features Monday's flag save

It will be an almost historic night Monday when former major leaguer Rick Monday and renowned artist Pat Matthews appear first at the MacArthur Museum of Arkansas Military History and later at the Arkansas Arts Center Children's Theater in MacArthur Park.

Billed as "Stars & Stripes - Baseball and the American Flag," this is a major fundraiser for the the MacArthur Museum.

There are probably millenials who have never heard of Monday but in 1976 -- obviously a much different era -- the Batesville native was the center fielder for the Chicago Cubs in Los Angeles to play the Dodgers when two protesters suddenly ran onto the field and tried to set an American flag on fire.

Monday swooped down, grabbed the flag and carried it to safety away from the protesters who were arrested and escorted off the field. Monday's actions received a thunderous ovation from the Dodgers fans.

That action has been voted as one of the top 100 moments in baseball history.

Monday, who later played for the Dodgers and is part of their radio broadcast team, will bring that flag to the reception Monday night and relate his experience.

Joining him will be Matthews who in 2001, just days after the attack on the Twin Towers, painted a flag over a landscape he had just completed. All proceeds from the painting and prints were donated to Battalion 9, the New York Fire Station that suffered the most lost lives of firefighters attempting to save people after the 9-11 tragedy.

A flag painted by Matthews will be auctioned off.

For more information about tickets and the reception call (501) 376-4602. The reception is 5-6:30 p.m. From 7-8:30 p.m. the event will move to the Arts Center and admission is free.

. . .

Tonight is probably the most highly anticipated opening of a basketball season for the University of Arkansas at Little Rock in its history, and in years to come thousands will claim they were there to see Darrell Walker's first game as head coach of the Trojans.

It has been a long journey for Walker but he finally came home to coach UALR, and if his team has half the tenacity of its coach and they improve on defense, they will be fine.

Walker was an All-Southwest Conference guard for the University of Arkansas and a first-round pick by the New York Knicks. He spent 10 years in the NBA as player and 20 as a coach with two stints as a head coach. When he left the NBA Walker returned to college and got his degree. He then spent two years coaching tiny Clark Atlanta and was 45-18 before getting the call to come home. He has made Little Rock his home since he left college.

Walker has several new players and at least three will be starters. The Trojans play Southeastern Oklahoma State and opening tip is 6:30.

. . .

This Saturday, yours truly will check off a bucket-list item by covering the Battle of the Ravine in Arkadelphia, the only rivalry in the country where the visiting team literally walks across a ravine to play.

This year Ouachita Baptist will be doing the walking and Henderson State will be focused on giving the No. 4 ranked Tigers, 10-0, their first loss of the season.

Attending a game as a columnist went on my list when my daughter was a student at OBU and on a visit saw the purple bubbles overflowing from the HSU fountain. What the Reddies have done to the OBU Tiger in years past is what legends are made of.

The teams have played 91 times -- they stopped playing from 1951-1962 because the tricksters were getting out of hand -- and the record is 43-42-6 with Henderson owning the edge.

There will be a column on the LSU-Arkansas game but only on arkansasonline.com.

Sports on 11/08/2018

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