Staying Fit
For most baseball buffs, the term “safe at home” is often associated with the thrill of victory. But for the legendary Joe Torre, it’s become the rally cry for his latest and most rewarding work.
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In his boyhood home in Brooklyn, the all-star player and 4-time World Series winning manager was a victim of domestic violence. “I grew up in a domestically violent home,” Torre says. “When I was coming home from school as a youngster and I saw my dad’s car in the driveway I would go to a friend’s house. I connected my dad being there with fear. There’s no worse emotion than fear…it’s a helpless feeling.”
Now, the baseball great is trying to help the millions of young people who are experiencing the same abuse he once faced. He’s formed the Safe at Home Foundation, an organization that offers safe havens to kids suffering from domestic violence. Through Margaret’s Place (the name is attributed to his mother), victims of psychological and physical abuse get a safe room in their school where they can meet with a professional counselor trained in domestic violence intervention and prevention. Torre makes frequent visits to each of the ten Margaret’s Place classrooms that he’s set up throughout the New York metropolitan area.
My Generation met with the baseball great to learn more about his inspiring work that is impacting so many.
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