March 31, 2005
March 31, 2005
Disability Policy Advisor to Throw Opening Pitch at Comerica Park
LANSING – Governor Jennifer M. Granholm has tapped her disability policy advisor and long-time Detroit Tigers fan – Patrick Cannon – to be her designated pitcher at the Detroit Tigers’ Opening Day ceremonies at Comerica Park on Monday, April 4.
Granholm, who was invited by the Tigers to throw a ceremonial first pitch, is extending the honor to Cannon who has attended more than 40 Detroit Tigers’ Opening Day ceremonies and some 500 Detroit Tigers’ baseball games since 1955.
“Everyday, I represent the people of Michigan, but on Opening Day, I’m representing Detroit Tigers’ fans across the state,” said Granholm. “That’s because Opening Day is for the fans and when it comes to fans, there is no one second to Pat Cannon.”
Granholm said she invited Cannon, who is blind, to share the Opening Day honor with her not only because of his loyalty to the Tigers over the years, but also as a way to demonstrate that people with disabilities can do just about anything if they have the right attitude, training, and support.
Cannon, who often speaks publicly on disability issues, tells his audiences that, as a person who is blind, there are some things that he currently can’t do – flying jet fighter planes and pitching in the major leagues are just two. But, the prospect of throwing the ceremonial pitch is not the least bit intimidating.
“I never go to a Detroit Tigers’ game expecting the team to lose, and I’m not going to Opening Day expecting my pitch to be bad,” said Cannon. “It’s going to be a great day at Comerica Park.”
Pat Cannon brought a unique blend of experiences and abilities with him when he was appointed director of the Michigan Commission for the Blind in 1997. As head of the state's rehabilitation agency for people who are blind, Pat continues his longstanding commitment to change what it means to be a person with a disability in Michigan and America today. Granholm appointed him her disability policy advisor in 2003.
Cannon was instrumental in gaining passage of the 1990 amendments to the Michigan Handicappers' Civil Rights Act and advocated for enactment of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). Pat has conducted hundreds of seminars and workshops on disability rights, blindness and disability awareness and is a member of the Advanced ADA National Training Network. He is also a trainer for Windmills, the nationally acclaimed disability awareness program.
Many years ago, Pat was a founding member of the first officially sanctioned Detroit Tigers Fan Club and later, in 1977, STEWED: a Mid-Michigan sports trivia group.
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