From The Morning Call
Allentonian's long devotion to Flyers earns a call
January 28, 2004
Poor
Ken Hitchcock. Nobody believes it when he calls.
Ken Hitchcock, the head
coach of the Flyers, recently took a little time to call long-time Allentown
resident Frank Fiala. And he had to work to convince Frank that he was for
real.
What prompted the Sunday morning phone call?
I had written
to the coach two weeks earlier and I described Frank's avid devotion to the
Flyers and his admiration for the discipline and spirit that Ken Hitchcock has
brought to the team. And I neglected to tell Frank about my letter on his
behalf. Given that the Flyers are in the heart of their season, I just was not
sure when and if he might get a response.
But I guess Ken Hitchcock was
impressed by Frank's amazing life. At age 91, Frank has lived through so much.
The oldest of five kids, he dropped out of school to get a job and help feed his
siblings. He raised his two young daughters by himself after his wife died at
early age. He spent over 45 years as a truck driver, in an era when there was no
national highway system and drivers had to pack and unload their vehicles. And,
he owned a home in South Whitehall Township until just a few years
ago.
Frank always had a bit of a wild side: He fought as a middleweight
boxer; he lived and worked in New York City as a teenager, and nearly lost his
leg in a motorcycle accident. I was surprised to learn he had never served in
the military. This is not a guy who would ever back down from a fight. But then
I found out: He tried to enlist, but they turned him down since he was a single
parent.
Frank goes around saying he was ''born with a weak mind and a
strong back.'' But he was always very inquisitive and curious. Being so hard
working, Frank would have been a success at any college or academic field he
might have tried.
I met Frank a year ago, purely by accident: I wound up
renting an apartment in the same building where he lives. And like most people,
I grossly underestimated his age. That's one of his favorite games, having folks
guess how old he is. While his leathery skin and wispy white hair mark him as a
senior citizen, his strong voice and firm grip belie a 1912 birth year.
I
was a little nervous when I moved to Allentown in the summer of 2002. Having
grown up in New York City, and having spent the last 12 years in Washington,
D.C., this would be smallest city I have ever lived in. But I have a great job
as the systems librarian at DeSales University, and I love all the parks,
events, and festivals in the Lehigh Valley. And when ever I crave a subway ride
and a little more concrete, I visit Manhattan. My dad passed away six years ago,
and I relocated here so it would be easier to visit mom, who still lives on the
upper West Side.
And now I'm hooked on rooting for the Flyers. As an
ex-athlete (besides boxing, he excelled at baseball and football), Frank likes
to watch the local sports teams on TV. But the Flyers are his favorite. He has
memorized all their names and numbers, a little tricky given all the injuries
and recent trades. He knows who are the goal scorers and who are the hustlers
who dig the puck out from the corners. He rails against Steve Coates, the local
Flyers TV announcer, for talking too much, but then misses him whenever they
have the national guys doing the telecast.
The physical nature of hockey
appeals to Frank. With his crooked nose and missing front teeth, courtesy of his
boxing career, Frank looks like a hockey player. When the Flyers' star Jeremy
Roenick was hit with a stick to the mouth a few weeks ago, he was up yelling at
the refs. He felt the league was so unfair, giving Roenick a suspension and fine
for tossing a measly water bottle on the ice. And of course, Frank knows which
players on the team are the best fighters.
When I got over the shock over
hearing that Ken Hitchcock called Frank, I was curious as to what they talked
about. Actually, they didn't talk about the Flyers. I thought Frank would at
least tell him to make all the players get a shave and haircut. Frank is ''old
school'' when it comes to player appearance. But Ken Hitchcock just asked a few
questions about Frank and thanked him for his loyalty to the team.
The
games do mean a lot to Frank. He can't get out much in the cold weather and he
battles a growing list of infirmities. Hardly a week goes by without his
visiting another specialist or the pharmacy. And since a pacemaker was installed
next to his heart two years ago, even the short walk to the local park leaves
him winded.
Given Frank's self-reliant nature, it's no surprise he still
drives and does all of his shopping and cooking himself. But later this year, he
plans to move to an assisted-living apartment. He is worried about how he will
get along. But, I'm sure he will charm the residents and staff in no
time.
And, I'm hoping this June, he and I will be sitting in front of the
TV at his new place, watching the Flyers hoist the Stanley Cup.