Yogi Berra, 90 Years Strong
"In theory there is no difference between theory and practice. In practice there is.” - Yogi Berra
“I don’t think I’ll ever forget the expression of Yogi Berra when I handed him the key to the city of Cuggiono (birthplace of his father, Pietro). His emotion mixed with his astonishment of the honor made the moment all that more special.” - Dr. Ernesto Damiani
Lawrence “Yogi” Berra, born on the 12th of May in 1925, turned 90 years young this past Tuesday. Berra was born in a primarily Italian neighborhood of St. Louis, to Italian immigrants Pietro and Paolina Berra. Pietro, originally from Cuggiono, in the province of Milan in northern Italy, arrived at Ellis Island on October 18, 1909, at the age of 23. "My father came over first. He came from the old country. And he didn't know what baseball was. He was ready to go to work. And then I had three other brothers and a sister. My brother and my mother came over later on. My two oldest brothers, they were born there, Mike and Tony. John and I and my sister Josie were born in St. Louis.” - Yogi.
Yogi dropped out of school to help his family in eighth grade seeing as times were rough for Italian immigrants in those days, however he still found the time to play American Legion baseball. Lawrence's nickname, “Yogi" came from a childhood friend who thought he resembled a Hindu holy man, referred to as a yogi whenever he sat around with arms and legs crossed waiting to bat or while looking sad after a losing game. In his teens, Berra got serious about baseball. He was playing in the minor leagues when he and neighborhood friend Joe Garagiola were offered a deal by Cardinals manager Branch Rickey. But Rickey only offered Berra $250, half of what he paid Garagiola. Berra turned Rickey down and was soon discovered by the Yankees and the rest is history - 18 time All-Star, 13 time World Series champion, 3 time AL MVP.
In Berra’s autobiography he spoke about the only trip that he made to Italy and the importance of it. He said that it really open his eyes, helping him to see where his father came from, his heritage and culture… much of what was forgotten. The first Italian immigrants wanted to erase what had been their life before the trip. Being Italian in the first half of 1900 in America was not at all an easy thing. Italians were looked down upon and discriminated against, making life in the new country all that more difficult, however the preservation, courage and desire of those like the Berra’s is what paved the way towards the future success of a culture.
The story of the Berra family is just one of many that represents Italian heritage, exemplifying trials and successes in the US. One of the groups that has taken the initiative to bring to light these kinds of stories is the “Ecoistituto Valle del Ticino”, chaired by Oreste Magni, is dedicated to the recovery of the historical memory of the migration phenomenon at the turn of the 1800’s and 1900’s. On the evening of Tuesday, May 12 (Yogi Berra’s birthday celebration) Magni said: "We have a duty to preserve these memories.” The efforts that the “Ecoistituto Valle del Ticino” has set forth are also flanked by the Historical Museum Cuggionese, chaired by Cavalier Gianluigi Garavaglia, which deals with the restoration and the identification of the function of objects and antique tools, belonged to the community Cuggionese. Baseball can now easily be added to the list of these historical memories that represents all that is Italian.
As the history of a generation passes by the memories remain. An example to this, directly from the Italian-American community of St. Louis, Brent Buffa (member of Novara Baseball in the Italian League) says: "There must be something in our genes that links us to baseball," he said, "My father spoke often of Yogi Berra and his extraordinary results as a ballplayer, and his emergence in a batting line up that included the likes of Joe DiMaggio and Mickey Mantle. We live near Yogi’s old neighborhood, ‘The Hill’, the people there are not rich by any means, but they do all hold a great deal of dignity and are proud of their Italian roots.”
Many things in life come back to a full circle, and in this case we look can look at the life of Yogi Berra. A son of an Italian immigrant who captured the attention and respect on a scale unimaginable to many… a story that can be traced back to a little town outside of Milan, Italy (Cuggiono) - a town that as a sign of respect and dignity honored Lawrence “Yogi” Berra with an honorary Citizenship and the Italian National Team jersey with his number 8 printed on the back.
