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| (photo courtesy Boys and Girls Clubs of Greater St. Louis) | |
Earlier this month, St. Louis Cardinals pitcher Jack Flaherty made a surprise donation to the Boys & Girls Clubs of Greater St. Louis: "thousands" of books purchased from EyeSeeMe African American Children's Bookstore in University City, Mo., the St. Louis Business Journal reported.
"The city of St. Louis has embraced me from the beginning of my time as a professional baseball player," said Flaherty, who made his Major League Baseball debut in 2017. "We couldn’t think of a better way to give directly back to the community by supporting a local, Black-owned business with the EyeSeeMe Bookstore and simultaneously donating them all to the Boys & Girls Club of Greater St. Louis."
The donation included some of Flaherty's childhood favorites, such as the Magic Tree House series and sports titles by Mike Lupica. The Boys & Girls Clubs made the announcement on the same day as the Cardinals' home opener at Busch Stadium.
"I hope these stories and adventures will inspire the next generation as reading held such an important part of my development," Flaherty continued. "I am excited to work with both organizations in the future and it's an honor to support them all today."
EyeSeeMe owners Jeffrey and Pamela Blair founded the bookstore in 2015. Last November the store was featured in a CBS Sunday Morning segment, which ushered in a wave of support from around the country.