St. Louis, Missouri – Amidst a busy schedule, thousands of eyes watching his every swing on the course, Nolan Arenado has quietly done something no one expected – he and his wife, Laura, have been quietly providing and supporting the entire living expenses of a group of 19 homeless immigrant children in East St. Louis for more than 8 months.
No news. No hashtag or viral video. It all came to light after a medical staff at the center shared:
“Every week, there are two bags of food left at the door. Never with names. But inside there are always fresh food, new clothes… and sometimes small handwritten letters signed: ‘Uncle N’ and ‘Aunt L’.”
The couple reportedly contacted the support center themselves, asked to remain anonymous, and also sponsored the tuition for three children who had been turned away from public school because of invalid documents.
A 10-year-old child in the group said in broken English:
“I don’t know who they are, but I dreamed that they were my real parents.”
Arenado, when asked in a recent interview about the reason behind this action, simply said:
“Baseball gave me fame. But as a person, you don’t need anyone to know who you are.”
When fans think of Nolan Arenado, they may think of his awards, his home runs, or his superb defense at third base. But now, there is a group of young children who will grow up with the memory of the ‘uncle in red’ – the man who brought light into a place that seemed to be dark.
“Don’t write about me,” he wrote in a brief email to the center, “write about the kids.”
If you want, I can create an image to illustrate this post: Nolan and Laura Arenado standing quietly with children in the twilight, with a touching quote. Would you like that?