The year 2020 will forever be remembered as the year of coronavirus. Despite the heartache of the last eight months, the days march on, and Thursday is one of most celebrated holidays on the calendar. Thanksgiving.
While it will be a lot different than turkey celebrations of days gone by, it is still the day reserved where people reflect and give thanks for what they have. COVID-19 may be keeping us away from the big gatherings with families and friends, but it won't rob us of what the day has always meant and what it will continue to mean.
We took a spin around the sports landscape in the Capital Region to get the thoughts of public figures that make their way in arenas, on courts and fields and race tracks and rinks. Here is what they are thankful on this Thanksgiving.
Bob Belber, Times Union Center general manager (there hasn't been a live event there since March): “I am thankful for family and friends and great friendships. I am very thankful to a very good personal friend who recently bid on my backstage passes I auctioned out. Selling that private collection wasn't something I was planning to do. I was able to send $500 to each of the 23 workers who have been furloughed since March. I wanted to do right by my people; some of them have been with me for 20 years. I consider all my employees to be family. In the short time we have on this planet, those who pass through your life mean so much to you. Whatever I can do to help others, I will do that.”
Rick Bennett, Union hockey coach (season was canceled last week): “I will always stay with this one. I am thankful our family will get-together. Having your family together in these COVID times makes me feel for the people who have lost loved ones to COVID. That is what I think about. That is what I will think about. And I am thankful for our guys, proud of them. (Season canceled) stings. You can dwell on it, or you can move forward. That is what they have done because that is their character, and we appreciate it.”
Will Brown, UAlbany men's basketball coach (program is on pause due to COVID-19): “I am thankful that my family is healthy and safe, and I am thankful that the young men in our program are healthy and safe, and I am thankful the University has taken the precautions they have taken to ensure the health and safety of everyone at the university. I am thankful and optimistic that we will have a season, but the biggest thing for me is that everyone close to me is healthy and safe through this difficult time. We have to be careful with our team because we don't want any gatherings. I would love to have my entire team at my house, but that is not possible. But we will make sure they have plenty to eat. They are used to not being home at Thanksgiving, but this is not what anyone is used to or accustomed to.”
Ali Jacques, Siena women's basketball coach (program is on pause due to COVID-19): “I am definitely thankful for my family — my husband, his family, my two brothers and sister, and my mom. The other thing that goes with that throughout all the turmoil that our program and players have experienced, I think I was able to develop more trusting relationships with them, and I am grateful for that opportunity. I had ordered a 25-pound turkey for Thanksgiving, and I wanted to have the team over to the house, but now it's just me and my husband because they are in quarantine. I was going to have them come over seven at a time. We keep checking on them.”
Rob Keefe, Albany Firebirds coach (team will start play in the National Arena League in April): “In this day and age, I am very thankful for my health and the health of my family with what our country is going through. And I am thankful that the Empire are coming back to Albany, and I consider myself fortunate to be able to help others get careers and jobs. 2020 is making everyone realize that you have to be thankful for the basic things in our lives — a roof over your head, good health. I will spend Thanksgiving with some really close friends (in Orlando, Fla.). I am staying away from my mom and dad, who are getting up there in age. They will be in Washington D.C., and my brother and his four young kids are in South Carolina. We will have a Zoom call at 8 Thanksgiving night, and we'll have a toast and we'll play games for two hours. Just want everyone to be safe.”
Jack Knowlton, owner of Belmont/Travers winner Tiz the Law: "I am thankful that horse racing was the only major sport that managed to have its real championship races. Although they were not on schedule, they all happened this year, and Sackatoga was fortunate enough to have Tiz the Law compete. You can't play on the biggest stage there is if you don't have a horse like that. I am thankful for all the wonderful people who gravitated to Sackatoga and all the success and fun we had despite the pandemic.”
Carmen Maciariello, Siena men's basketball coach (program is on pause due to COVID-19): “This is a great time to be with my wife (Laura), my 5-month old son (Matteo) and my 3½-year old daughter (Reese), who is going on 16. She is a lot of fun. Since the pandemic started, she has grown and her vocabulary has grown. It's great to be able to see the family in these times and not having to rush out so often. Coaches are creatures of habit, so being able to adapt and make constant adjustments is a good thing. I will hope for some turkey, cranberry and stuffing, and a little red wine.”
Colleen Mullen, UAlbany women's basketball coach (program is on pause due to COVID-19): “I am thankful for the health and happiness of my family, my wife (Lauren) and our kids (Maggie, 5, and 3-year-old twins Brennan and Callan). With everything going out of control, I am so thankful for our health and that we have been safe so far. I have one brother, and, besides my parents, I have a ton of aunts and uncles and nieces and nephews. It's tough that I am not with them (her family is from Chelmsford, Mass.), but we have Face Time and Zoom. And I am thankful for our players. They are staying in their dorms or apartments and they are hanging in there. I have to give them so much credit because they are committed to having a season. When you have something taken away from you that you have always had, you get a whole new perspective of gratitude.”
Dave Smith, RPI hockey coach (season as canceled last week): “That is easy. I talked to my wife (Susan, a professor at RPI) about it. I said I am thankful for three things: first of all, family. Not only our two daughters (Ellis, Kylie), who are thriving in this muddled world, but our extended family. We are grateful for that. No. 2 is our health. Not just our family, but the people closest to us are healthy. Last, I said to my staff and my players that we have been through a grinder, and we have grown closer together.”
twilkin@timesunion.com • 518-454-5415 • @tjwilkin
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