Schilling makes pitch to combat atrophy

MEDFIELD, Mass. -- Just call it some neighborly help.
Red Sox ace Curt Schilling spent several hours on Saturday signing autographs and thrilling countless fans with a smile, all to benefit the family of 5-year-old William Johnson and those who share his debilitating condition.
Officials with Families of Spinal Muscular Atrophy (FSMA) estimated that nearly 2,000 people passed through an old warehouse and waited up to an hour to have personal articles and memorabilia signed by the 2004 postseason hero.
The Sox hurler and his wife, Shonda, put together the "Extreme Yard Sale" in their hometown of Medfield to raise money for FSMA and simultaneously help Heidi and Tripp Johnson clear out some 20,000 pounds of lifelong possessions in the wake of having their home renovated by the crew of ABC's "Extreme Makeover: Home Edition."
"The Johnson family is a Medfield family and they're friends with our family, and their son Will has SMA and goes to school with my son, Grant," said the pitcher. "They're friends and we've known them since we came to Boston, and this is just something we threw together this week."
Schilling is no longer amazed by the support and turnout at such events as Saturday's fundraiser, which is expected to generate up to $40,000 for FSMA.
"I don't wonder," he said. "I've stopped being surprised at the way fans are here."
Will's mother Heidi was busy on Saturday running around the warehouse, trying to make sure as many people as possible left satisfied.
"The Schilling family is the most giving family we've ever known," she said. "They turned my dusty old yard sale into probably one of the biggest SMA events we've ever had in the area. And now we're going to make the difference for Spinal Muscular Atrophy because of the Schillings."
Will Johnson and others with SMA did their share by selling $2 bracelets. Fans paid $25 per autographed item.
"He's 5 1/2, so it's kind of hard for him to even express it, but, man, his smile tells it all," Will's mother said. "He knows these people came here for him and all the people that suffer like him. He knows how big it was to have Curt to come to his yard sale."
Of course, there were other issues on the minds of the hundreds of Sox fans who turned out at the fundraiser -- like will Manny Ramirez and Theo Epstein return in 2006?
"It's just Manny being Manny," Schilling said of Ramirez's reported threat in Saturday's Boston Globe to not report to Spring Training unless he's traded. "It's another month and another month where everything happens. It's no big deal. It's happened every month I've been here."
As for the Epstein, Schilling is still hopeful for a quick and satisfying resolution to his contract negotiations.
"I'm hoping everything gets done and resolved in the next 24 to 48 hours," he said. "He's an asset to the club."
Schilling's day, which included his child's soccer match before the yard sale, concludes with another charity event. The Schillings will host a private reception at the State Room in Boston to thank "Curt's Pitch for ALS" members who donated to the ALS Association's New England chapters in 2005.

Source: http://chicago.cubs.mlb.com/