Monday, January 24, 2005
My Hero From The Eagles' NFC Championship Victory...
No, it wasn't Donovan McNabb, Brian Westbrook, or either of the Lewis's, although they deserve nothing but praise.
Surprisingly, it was Timmy Kelly.
Don't know who he is? If you saw the national anthem performed before yesterday's game, you know who he is.
Timmy's bio from the Eagles playoff run last year tells the story of no ordinary 10-year-old kid. Timmy was born prematurely with mild cerebral palsy and without sight.
What he can do is sing. And sing he did. I really hope you guys saw it...
Brian Murphy talks a little bit about Timmy's performance in his "The Hangover" column on ESPN.com...
The key moment, when we all knew it was to be Philly's Day, was when little Timmy Kelly, blind and stricken with cerebral palsy, belted out a national anthem that had even hardened Philly fans -- the ones whose lifetime of cheesesteaks have spawned the hardest of arteries -- drying moist eyes.
The good sign for the Eagles wasn't so much Little Timmy's beautiful effort. It was the fact that, incredibly, nobody booed the kid.
It was then, and only then, that I saw clear sailing for Iggles Nation.
From where I was standing, Timmy had several of the players and a few of the military personnel at the game in tears.
I have to admit that the room got a bit dusty for me, too...
P.S. This intro to the Eagles website just gave me chills on top of my goosebumps...
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