NAADD Selects Jim Abbott as Keynote Speaker
Feb. 5, 2010 NAADD Selects Jim Abbott as Keynote Speaker An important part of our responsibility as NAADD Executive Committee members is setting the programming for each year's Convention. We spend a significant amount of time as a group discussing what topics and speakers our membership wants and would benefit from. We use results from Convention evaluation forms, informal feedback from members and recommendation from our conference representatives. In fact, our keynote speaker this year was a direct result of a member reaching out to us and suggesting a potential speaker. I want to thank Kurt Gulbrand, assistant athletics director for development at the University of Michigan, for securing one of their former student-athletes and major benefactors as this year's NAADD keynote speaker. NAADD is pleased to have former Major League Baseball (MLB) player, Jim Abbott, as our keynote speaker. Jim Abbott is an amazing person and has an exciting story and message to share with us. We will all benefit by hearing his approach to overcoming adversity as well as his reasons for being a major donor to the University of Michigan. Abbott is not only an example of someone who has overcome great adversity to achieve his dreams, but he is also setting a tremendous example by being one of the few former professional athletes who engage with and financially support their alma mater. Jim Abbott was born Sept. 19, 1967, in Flint, Mich. without a right hand. Abbott beat the odds and became an amazing professional baseball pitcher for four different MLB teams, and was a Gold Medal Olympian for the United States baseball team. He was also an All-American hurler at Michigan, leading the Wolverines to two Big Ten titles; won the Sullivan Award in 1987 for the best amateur athlete in the United States; and threw a 4-0 no-hitter for the Yankees Sept. 4, 1993 against the Cleveland Indians. Jim played for 10 seasons and ended his big league playing career in 1999.
Today, Abbott is a professional motivational speaker, living in southern California. Through stories, anecdotes and jokes, Abbott's motivational speeches show that people can overcome adversity and limitations to reach their dreams and goals. He has been featured in USA Today, Newsweek, Time, Sports Illustrated, Parade Magazine, People Magazine and Baseball America. In addition to being a motivational speaker, Abbott serves as a guest pitching instructor during Spring Training for the Los Angeles Angels. As a philanthropist, Jim Abbott donated $100,000 to Amigos de los Ninos, an organization that aids groups that care for children in California. His financial contributions at the University of Michigan have been centered on the Wilpon Baseball Complex. However, the depth and breadth of his personal contributions are far greater and reach globally. For more information on Jim Abbott, please visit his web site by clicking here. In addition to Abbott’s Keynote Speech, the NAADD Convention features a variety of educational opportunities including AD panels, round table presentations and the Fundamentals of Athletics Development (FOAD). I encourage each and every one of you to join us in Anaheim, California June 22-25, for this terrific opportunity for professional development as well as a chance to reconnect with alumni on the West Coast. See you in Anaheim! Jim Paquette |
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