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By Anne Boone-Simanski
BALTIMORE - Every baseball fan loves home runs. And since the hometown boys of summer have hit a dry spell lately, the folks at The Baltimore Station knocked the cover off the ball recently with their 15th annual “HOMERUN for Recovery” benefit. “TBS is a therapeutic residential recovery program for men who have been homeless mostly due to chronic substance abuse,” said Development Director Clare Gorman. “We run this unique model at a low cost — just $35 a day to house, feed and provide services to each man in the program, and that’s almost half the cost of incarceration.”
A grand-slamming group crowded into Nick’s Seafood at the Cross Street Market in Federal Hill for great food and music by Allen Thomas and the Ultimate Rhythm Section. Seen toe-tapping were: Dennis Settle; Louisa Townsend of O’Conor and Mooney; Lippincott, William & Wilkins’ Jay Biss; Provident Bank Senior Vice President Tom Crawford; and the big kahuna from Nick’s Seafood, Tom Chagouris.
Mike Seipp, executive director of TBS, joined WJZ-13’s Mark Viviano to host a very lively auction, which included Gov. Martin O’Malley’s suite at Camden Yards for an Orioles game. When the item — called “It’s a Hit” — came up for bid, the governor himself tried his hand as auctioneer. O’Malley sent the price right out of the park, as two guests launched a bidding war. Pat Stout and Pamela Hebrank both walked away $9,000 lighter, but both were winners, as Gov. O’Malley donated a second game to accommodate the heavy hitters.
“Now, if we can just get the owner to sell the team,” O’Malley exclaimed. “What’s the next auction item, Mark?”
Next up ... the Orioles owner’s box. Winning bid — $6,000.
TBS board members Allison Barlow, Marc Kantrowski and Shelly Gentile were thrilled with the more than $83,000 raised for the organization.