Gary Carter was an all-star catcher for several teams in the Major Leagues, most notably with the 1986 World Champion New York Mets – a team that won one of the greatest baseball championships ever played. Carter hailed from Fullerton; he was a one time paperboy for the local newspaper and had one of his last coaching jobs managing the Orange County Flyers to a league championship. He died this week of brain cancer at 57.
Carter made frequent trips to his boyhood home. And he spoke to hundreds if not thousands of school kids — including Fullerton Mayor Sharon Quirk-Silva when she was an 8th grader. Fullerton’s mayor will seek to honor one of Fullerton’s sons at an upcoming city council meeting. Quirk Silva posted this on her Facebook page tonight:
Gary Carter came to Nicolas Jr. High when i was in 8th Grade, to speak to the students. He did this many times over the years.
I will make a motion at council that we look into naming a street near Nicolas Jr. High, Gary Carter Street. We will also close Tuesday’s council meeting in Honor of Gary Carter!
Honoring Gary Carter isn’t conservative or liberal — it’s simply the right thing to do.