Remembering Greg
Gregory Joseph Montalbano
August 24, 1977 – August 21, 2009
Greg Montalbano was born on August 24, 1977, gradually developing a fierce love of the outdoors, an incredible ability to make people laugh and a gift for throwing a baseball 95 miles an hour with his left arm.
Most people are familiar with Greg’s baseball career; a leftie who
pitched for St. John’s in Shrewsbury, Mass, Northeastern University,
The Red Sox organization and finished his career with the Worcester
Tornadoes, an affiliate of the Can-Am League.
What
many don’t know about him is that he was a passionate outdoorsman, Eagle
Scout, avid golfer and loved spending time with kids particularly at
the Jimmy Fund Clinic. As a member of The Boy Scouts of America, Greg
became an Eagle Scout with Troop 100 in his hometown of Westborough,
Mass. Through Scouting, he learned leadership skills and values that
were very apparent throughout his life. Greg never missed an opportunity
for a backpacking trip in Maine or a canoeing trip down the Alagash
or Battenkill River. As a youth, he also attended Massachusetts Junior
Conservation Camp which taught him many outdoor and life skills.
When
old enough to drive, Greg would spend countless hours fly fishing the
various streams and rivers of Central Massachusetts from Holden to Belchertown
with the Swift River in Petersham always being the destination of choice.
While most people were sipping hot cocoa in front of a fire on a cold
January morning, Greg would be out ice fishing before the sun came up
on one of the local ponds. When released by the Red Sox organization
and no longer spending his winters in Florida playing ball, deer hunting
season soon became his favorite. Whether it was Jamaica, Vt., where
he spent a week every year or locally at Upton State Forest, he never
missed an opportunity to get out in the woods.
Greg
also had a very strong love for the game of golf. Greg never missed
an opportunity to spend time with friends out on the course. He also
enjoyed being a part of the many Jimmy Fund Golf events that he was
asked to speak at. With the ability to hit a golf ball much further
than the “average Joe” he could turn the longest holes into a drive
and a chip shot, while seizing the opportunity to question his opponent's
manhood at the same time. When you golfed with Greg, you knew you would
be in for a day of laughs. The looks and laughs he would get when he
pulled out his 18 inch pitching wedge that was no longer than the average
person's forearm or hearing the stories about how, in Florida, they
would make bets to see who could get closer to the alligators. A round
was always more enjoyable when Greg was present.
Greg passed away on August 21, 2009, after repeatedly throwing every pitch in his repertoire at his 13-year battle with cancer. His legacy lives on through the many lives he touched as well as dozens of tributes held in his honor, including One Ball Two Strikes.
