The man who threw the ceremonial first pitch to start the game was former Eyewitness News reporter Ed Crump, still recognizable despite much longer hair and a very bushy beard.
"For somebody who hasn't seen me in the 18 months since I've retired, I definitely look shaggy. But the reason I did this is, I'm fortunate right now to be on targeted chemo, which means it's not as severe as non-targeted chemo, and it doesn't come with all the horrible side effects. The nausea, the loss of hair," he said.
Crump spoke about his fight against stage 2 multiple myeloma, an incurable bone and blood cancer, because he wants to help others.
"When my mom died of multiple myeloma 20 years ago, she found it March that she was sick and she was gone in August and they really couldn't even treat her." Crump said. "And unfortunately for a lot of multiple myeloma patients, which is by the way, a three stage cancer, they don't present with symptoms until it's too late."
His decades on the air reporting for ABC11 should make him a trusted source of accurate information for those in our audience who may be unaware of the disease or who want to learn more.
"I hope so. If there's any notoriety at all that comes with my name," Crump said, "if I can lend it to this, how can I say no?"
Organizers of the fundraiser linked to the softball game, Strike Out Cancer, appreciate the spotlight he has placed on the need for awareness and donations that support research, through his story and an earlier profile published by our newsgathering partners at the News & Observer.
"As the personality that he was on TV, a lot of people recognize him and know him," said Peace University softball coach Charlie Dobbins. "And I said, 'You get to bring something forward again, and give some insight on a cancer that a lot of people don't know about.'"
Crump's attitude during his serious health challenge is extremely positive.
"I'm really, really hoping to get some years of remission here. And the good news is, if I can do that, there's so many advancements that maybe by the time multiple myeloma gets me, we can call it a curable cancer."
You can donate to Strike Out Cancer here.