Jeff and ‘The Mick’: A Story of True Heroism
A boomer remembers
This true story of Mickey Mantle and Stan Schneider’s brother, Jeffrey, is “a story of true heroism.” But who’s the hero – “The Mick” or Jeff? In From Our Readers.
My brother Jeffrey was a simple man, with simple tastes. He had a warm and generous heart. He was the self-appointed family ambassador, who, from his outpost in Arizona, always worried about everyone else, and was passionately concerned about maintaining ties with relatives and friends.
For such a good and simple man, he struggled far too much. As a young child he struggled with rheumatic fever. Ultimately, he won that struggle. As a high school senior, he struggled to graduate with his class. With a lot of determination, he managed to pass his Regents exams and accomplish his goal. For most of his adult life he struggled to make a living. He ultimately won that battle too, and found his calling at MCI, Inc. (no pun intended). Jeff also struggled with arthritis. When the pain from that crippling disease became too much for him to take, he endured hip replacement surgery, and came out with a new lease on life – another struggle, another victory. Then leukemia presented a struggle which he could not win, not even with the determination and courage that Jeff characteristically brought to his many challenges. He died of the disease shortly after his 50th birthday.
Jeff was born in 1944, and I followed three years later – an official Baby Boomer. My family lived in the Bronx – somewhere on Jerome Avenue, and in the shadow of Yankee Stadium. Therefore, almost as a birthright, we were all die-hard Yankees fans who claimed to “bleed in pinstripes.” Growing up in the 1950s, we witnessed a decade of pure Yankees’ domination – eight world series and six titles. As a pre-teen, Jeff was a devoted fan, and Mickey Mantle was his idol. One of Jeff’s fondest wishes was to one day meet “the Mick.”
On June 10, 1994, Jeffrey’s 50th birthday, I was working on a project that took me to Bucharest, Romania. That evening, I called him in his hospital room to wish him a happy birthday. When he answered the phone, he was excited to share with me the most amazing thing that had just happened. He had just gotten off of a phone call from Mickey Mantle, who called to wish him a happy birthday, and to urge him to “hang in there.” Apparently, our younger brother Gary knew someone, who knew someone, who knew Mickey Mantle, and Gary was somehow able to convince “the Mick” to grant his big brother his dying wish. When Jeff told me this story, we both cried – tears of joy and tears of foreboding. Five months later Jeff passed away.
Mickey Mantle had his fans and his detractors. But for me, he will always be remembered as a hero. Not for his exploits on the field, but for his humanity towards my brother. May they both rest in peace.
Read more like Stan Schneider’s memories of his brother and other contributions from Boomer readers, including nostalgia, essays, and short fiction, in
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