Walk Off Warrior Wishes Come True At The Mets Game!

After 3 straight nights sleeping on a bus & making warrior wishes come true in Boston, my dad finally got to enjoy a good night sleep in an actual bed thanks to a cheap “Name your own price” hotel. However, the good night sleep was cut short because my dad still had to get up by 5:00 AM to catch his bus ride back to NYC to host heroes at the Mets game.

The bus rolled into NYC a little late due to traffic. Once in Manhattan, he got a little work done hanging out at Starbucks, before hopping on the 4 train out to CitiField. After 4 years of travelling the country to make Warrior Wishes come true, I think my dad FINALLY has the transportation system figured out in NYC…LOL. You can call him Magellan.

Today’s my dad had the honor of hostin Army Sgt Teri Will, a 25 year female veteran who has spent her military career photographing and documenting events for the Army. She brought along her brother, David, who came in from Philadelphia.

ARMY SFC TERRI WILL

A lifelong Mets fan, Sergeant First Class, Terri Will grew up attending Mets games with her family at the old Shea Stadium. In 1990, Terri joined the Army as a combat videographer and photographer. Over the next nearly 25 years, she also served as an Army broadcast journalist and supply sergeant. Her last tour in Iraq had her serving as the last First Sergeant for the American Forces Network out of Baghdad, as her unit was responsible for closing it down due to the drawdown of troop levels in the region. SFC Will’s final assignment was out of Ft. Totten in Bayside, Queens. Finally being at home, in NY, SFC Will decided it was the perfect time to retire, and did so in October of 2015. Since then, she has been attending school full-time, working on getting into nursing school and continues to work on her photography. She will be participating in her first photo show June 11th & 12th at the Bayside Historical Society.

My Dad “met” Sgt Will & her brother in front of Citi Field by the iconic “Big Apple ” to snap few photos. The crowds were accumulating early tonight, as it was 1986 World Series Jersey giveaway and the game was sold out!! There are not a lot of regular season games that actually sell out, but that 1986 Championship was a big day in Mets history , and every body wanted to get their hands on those awesome ’86 throwback Mets Jerseys.

But before heading inside to get their jerseys & watching the Mets face off against the Dodgers, they made a quick stop to McFadden’s for a delicious pregame meal.

McFadden’s Restaurant and Saloon, located just steps from the third base entrance at the CitiField Stadium, is THE home to true Mets fans! They have created a venue that appeals to a diverse crowd, including families, sports fans, beer fanatics and late night revelers. You can enjoy an ice-cold drafts in a 13,000 square foot tavern, complete with over 50 HD TVs, mutiple rooms, and a 100 foot island bar. make sure to drop in for a bite to eat before your next Mets game, or for celebratory drinks after!

McFaddens has been a great sponsor in Philadelphia for all 4 years of our mission, however, this was the first time we have been to McFaddens outside Citi field. Amani and Brendan from the New York location graciously provided a PreGame meal for the warriors.

My dad really enjoyed their dinner because it gave Teri time to share some incredible pictures with him – 25 years of covering the war in many different countries all over the world is impressive in itself, but my dad said “the way she captured the emotion and the moments in some of those photos was simple amazing. You could see the passion in the way she described each of the photos to me.”

Thankfully the World Series jersey giveaway was for ALL fans , not just “First 10,000” – so we didn’t have to worry about rushing into the stadium early to get one. People still lined up 3 Hours before the game to get one…

After dinner, the line had shortened tremendously. My dad said you could tell that Teri and especially her brother, were really excited to get that souvenir jersey .

The championship jerseys must have motivated the Mets as they came out swinging with 3 runs in the first. They coasted most of the game before giving up 3 runs in the bottom of the 9th inning to the Dodgers to tie the game at 5. But Curtis Granderson sent the Mets fans home happy with a Walk off home run in the bottom of the 9th inning! It was an incredible way to end an awesome day!

We want to thank McFaddens CitiField for the PreGame meal and and to New Era Cap for providing Mets caps for the warriors to match those cool jerseys!

TOGETHER WE MAKE WARRIOR WISHES COME TRUE!

Most importantly THANK YOU to Sgt Teri Will for your 25 years of service to our country and for capturing some history in your photos .

For the 4th night in 5 days, my dad got back on another overnight bus after the game to head to Washington DC to host a few Gold Star families on a very special Memorial Day weekend. Stay Tuned for more details.