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Chris makes his Ball Park Bucket List

Part-time resident Chris Swanson spent Memorial Day in Chicago. I know that’s not too newsworthy, But the fact that he completed a major task he has been working on for 16 years is worth at least a column.

Chris and his wife, Kim, moved to Fountain Hills several years ago. Their other home is in Monterey County not far from the ocean in California. Chris owns three Round Table Pizza franchises in California. Kim is a flight attendant for American Airlines on overseas routes.

Back in 2002 Chris read a book called “Baseball Park Bucket List.” It contained information on every baseball park in the Major Leagues located in the U.S. and Canada.

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Chris makes his Ball Park Bucket List

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Part-time resident Chris Swanson spent Memorial Day in Chicago. I know that’s not too newsworthy, But the fact that he completed a major task he has been working on for 16 years is worth at least a column.

Chris and his wife, Kim, moved to Fountain Hills several years ago. Their other home is in Monterey County not far from the ocean in California. Chris owns three Round Table Pizza franchises in California. Kim is a flight attendant for American Airlines on overseas routes.

Back in 2002 Chris read a book called “Baseball Park Bucket List.” It contained information on every baseball park in the Major Leagues located in the U.S. and Canada.

He decided it would be fun to watch a game in each of the 30 cities listed so he took on the personal challenge.

And he did this with his son, Kyle, who was only four years old when they started.

Obviously, this tour had an impact on Kyle. He is now an outfielder for Cabrillo Junior College’s baseball team in California.

Going to games together created a bond between father and son which still exists today. Kyle calls Chris after every game to tell how he and the team did.

Their tour started in the San Francisco Giants home field, AT&T Park. That is one beautiful ball park,” Chris said.

Some 16 years later, they completed the tour of ballparks this past Memorial Day in Chicago’s storied ball park, Wrigley Field.

Chris sampled the home park beer of each Major League team. He also toured each city they visited by bicycling at least 10 miles in every city where they watched a game.

I asked him what his favorite stadium was, and he replied without hesitation, the stadium he liked best of the 30 major league stadiums he visited, he replied, “The stadium where the Kansas City Royals play.” He based his statement on the fans.

“They made the difference,” he said. They were the friendliest people I ever met. They were great!

Asked about his his biggest disappointment, he replied, “I forgot to bring a copy of The Fountain Hills Times with me for a picture at the entrance holding a copy of our hometown newspaper.”

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It’s looking like this is going to be a particularly hot weekend as the National Weather Service has issued an Extreme Heat Warning for the Phoenix area.

Temperatures could reach 120 degrees or more by Sunday. The all-time high in Phoenix was recorded on June 22, 1990, at 122.

Believe it or not, the all-time high in Fountain Hills is 125, recorded on July 28, 1995.

Be sure to stay in the cool as much as possible and stay hydrated.

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I and about a dozen other residents recently attended an exercise class intended for people with Parkinson’s Disease called PWR!Moves. The second session is this Saturday, June 18, 11 to 11:45 a.m.

The workshop is being offered by Cindy Holliday. It consists of pounding drumsticks on a large ball and body movements done to music.

The workshop sessions are held at TruFit Studios, 16838 E. Palisades Blvd., Ste. 104, Building A. For additional information, call (480) 272-0547.

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