Around the Valley: Yankee great headed to area; Whitehall student wins Phillies contest

Since its founding in 2002, the Lehigh Valley Yankee Fan Club has welcomed a lot of special guests to its events, including Tommy John, Stump Merrill and the 2009 World Championship trophy.Another such guest, Roy White, who played for the Yankees from 1965-1979, is scheduled to appear Tuesday night at the clubs meeting at the Hampton Lanes in Northampton.White was a link between teams featuring Mickey Mantle and two world championship clubs that featured Reggie Jackson and Thurman Munson.

He will be joined by Ray Negron, a best-selling author, Yankees executive, producer and inspirational speaker.Its a big night for us, said Chuck Frantz, the fan club founder and president.

Roy White played 15 seasons for the Yankees and he played with some great Hall of Famers like Mickey Mantle, Roger Maris and Yogi Berra early in his career and then he played for Billy Martin and with Reggie Jackson.

Just to have him there is going to be special for Yankees fans and were honored to have him join us.White released a book in 2023 called Roy White: From Compton to the Bronx.Frantz said there has been a lot of interest in Whites appearance, which will include a Q-and-A session.The Yankees are also bringing a lot of memorabilia and a lot of stuff from when they won the World Series ...

autographed baseballs from players like Graig Nettles and Chris Chambliss, a lot of autographed photos.

Well have an auction and you can get that stuff that night, Frantz said.And having Ray Negron there is also going to be special because he had a show on Broadway about his life with the Yankees and his time as a batboy.

He was in the dugout at Fenway Park the day of the famous Billy Martin-Reggie Jackson incident and hes got a lot of great stories.Frantz said he met White in the lobby of Yankee Stadium.I went over to him and started talking with him and mentioned our fan club and asked him if hed be interested in coming here for a book signing, Frantz said.

He was excited about coming, but we had a setback because his wife passed away and I waited for a stretch of time and then reconnected with his agent and we worked on making this happen.You can purchase a signed copy of the book for $35 and get a picture with White for $10.

The Q-and-A will run from 6 to 6:45 p.m.How many players have played for 15 seasons in the big leagues and all with the same team? It doesnt happen very often, Frantz said.

And then he stayed on to coach for another five seasons.Grace Held, a third-grade student at Steckel Elementary in the Whitehall-Coplay School District, was honored as an all-star student by the Phillies and got to be on the field and behind the scenes when the Phillies played the Nationals at Citizens Bank Park on Tuesday.

(Contributed photo/Bethany Koenig)Special honor for Whitehall studentMorgan Polony and her sister, Madison Kelly, were outstanding Zephyrs softball players.

Her husband, Andrew Polony, and his brother, Chris, were quarterbacks at Whitehall and her father-in-law, Andy Polony, was a talented athlete and a longtime teacher and coach in Allentown.So, Morgan, now a third-grade teacher at Steckel Elementary in the Whitehall-Coplay School District, knows the impact athletics can have on a young life.I nominated one of my students for the 2025 Philadelphia Phillies All-Star Student Contest, she said.

Out of hundreds of teachers who nominated students, they picked 10 students K-12 who go above and beyond both inside and outside of the classroom.

My student was one of the 10 chosen and was honored before the Phillies vs.

Nationals game this past week.

Her name is Grace Held.

She received a plaque and our school, Steckel Elementary, will receive a $1,000 donation.The night was special for Held, Polony and the Steckel Elementary community.Grace is a great student and role model for her peers, Polony wrote in her nomination of the third grader.What makes Grace even more special is how mature and responsible she is, Polony wrote.

She is patient, especially with friends who need extra help.

She has a heart of gold and is a great friend to everyone.

Outside of school, Grace sure keeps busy! She plays basketball and soccer.

Grace is also a big part of our schools PTO [Parent-Teacher Organization].

She helps with school events like book fairs and bingo nights.The night featured plenty of smiles for Held as she got to be on the field and go behind the scenes and even and to the podium at the press conference room.To top it off, the Phillies rallied for two runs in the bottom of the ninth and pulled out a 7-6 win over the Nationals.Polony, by the way, has received her own honors.Last year, she was recognized on the floor of the U.S.

House of Representatives during Teacher Appreciation Week.Signing ceremoniesThe high school signing ceremonies are happening fast and furious as the school year winds down.Here is the list of student-athletic commitments from Liberty:Cross Country: Emma Haas (Delaware Valley).Field Hockey: Cozette Frack (Moravian); Malia Lockhart (Smith College).Football: Ben Bartholomew (Franklin & Marshall); Cole Daignault (Bowdoin College); Daunte Morrison (Albright).Girls Tennis: Helena Lynn (St.

Francis).Girls Volleyball: Bailey Corrigan (South Carolina- Aiken); Abigail Schessler (Thomas Jefferson).Boys Soccer: Maximiliano Espinoza (Marywood).Girls Basketball: Shawna Beatty (Arkansas-Forth Smith).Swimming: David Gabrielle (Calvin).Wrestling: Doniya Anwari (Lock Haven); Addyson Munro (East Stroudsburg); Lucy Ortiz (NCC); Jasiah Pagan (Kutztown).Baseball: Justin Frey (Cairn University); Jaxon Horvath (Cairn); Frank Lasso (Wilson College); Mikey Mariano, Jr.

(Lock Haven); Jake Matthews (Albright); Dylan Metzgar (Lock Haven); Franklin Pichardo (University of Maryland).Boys lacrosse: Landon Lane (Susquehanna); Jason Torres (Utica).Softball: Sophia Rivera (Merrimack); Addison Sabo (Wilmington University).Tennis: Ben Blum (Scranton)..

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