Red Sox Fandom Can Heal Some Wounds

Being a member of Red Sox Nation has some magical effects, none more so than for a tornado survivor who was surprised by the Boston Red Sox after tragedy struck.

Courtney Wheaton of WSET.com covered the story of Jake Burchett of Lynchburg, Virginia, a tornado survivor who was injured by the storm throwing him into the side of a house. When paramedic Jeannie O’Brien checked for his injuries, she had to cut through his favorite Red Sox sweatshirt, which did not sit well with Burchett. “‘When she said I had to cut my shirt off I was really upset about it,’ said Burchett.”

O’Brien did more than make up for it. She contacted the Red Sox to see if they would replace the sweatshirt, and the team responded with a number of shirts and other memorabilia:

Wheaton added, “For Dave Burchett this box holds more than free stuff from his favorite team. For him it’s a reminder of losing his home, his dog and nearly his life.”

The team’s reach is well beyond the Massachusetts borders and its heart struck the right chord to provide hope to this part of Red Sox Nation.

Yet, it’s interesting to see how far that love extends in return.

Burchett’s house was gone, his dog was gone, and his life was hanging in the balance; yet, all that he could say to his possible saviour was a whirlwind of frustration after she had to cut his favorite Red Sox sweatshirt to save him. One could argue that a sweatshirt is hardly worth the expulsion of anger after such a tragedy, but the man did deserve to at least vent. A dog can be like losing a member of the family. A house is a man’s own private kingdom. After losing so much, Burchett must have been thinking do I have to lose the one thing that shows my allegiance to the greatest professional sports team too?!

There’s a man who bleeds Red Sox red. He thought of his badge of honor before his very own life. Whether that’s a good thing or a bad thing, I will leave that to you. His loyalty to Boston’s famous baseball club, however, is without question. How could the Red Sox even think about not repaying Burchett for his love of the team? Of course they supported him in his time of need.

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Condoning getting angry with a rescue worker is never okay, but one can certainly understand Burchett’s strife. His heart was not in his chest because it was on his sleeve. His home and his dog were taken, but the tornado could not take his passion away. In that regard, one can understand why the Red Sox would reward such sentiment.