Selling My Books on the Streets of Brooklyn 8/27 - Coach Sanchez

I’ve reached an age, 63, where friends have begun to pass away. Tony, Billy and WeeGee, three of my Bay 37th contemporaries, have left the stage, much too young, the past few years. Yesterday I learned that Ruben Sanchez, 61, succumbed to pancreatic cancer in June. He was two years behind me at Lafayette H. S.. We both had the privilege of playing for Murray “Ace” Adler, who turned the program around, and we both later coached with him. In fact, I discovered the sad news in a Facebook post by the coach’s daughter. We were unpaid assistants. Ruben paid his bills by working the thankless job of security at Lafayette as it deteriorated into one of the worst schools in NYC. Fortunately, it has been remade and has recovered into an entirely different school than the one we knew and loved. During Ruben’s years on the staff, the football team had a winning record every season. Ace retired in 1984. Ruben eventually moved to Fort Hamilton H.S. when Vinnie Laino, with whom we’d coached briefly at Lafayette, started the football program there. The Tigers won three city championships post 2000 under Vin’s leadership. Ruben coached the wide receivers. He grew up and still lived in Coney Island. He was a Vietnam veteran. One day he told me he needed to stay busy or he’d wind up writing plays about his experiences, which he obviously wished to forget. The comment had me feeling like a fraud, had me thinking he should be writing, not me. At the time, 1978 or so, I was writing my first novel, Five Cents, which remains unpublished and which is about a Vietnam veteran’s quiet readjust to civilian life. I then wrote Close to the Edge, which I self-published in 2000. There is a sequel of sorts to it, Inside Out, unpublished, set in the early 80's, and Ruben is one of the minor characters, as are several of the staff at Lafayette. I neglected to mention it the last time I ran into him, which was probably five years ago. I’d set up shop on 86th Street between 4th & 5th Avenue, and he was making the long walk from the bus stop nearby to the school, which was closed for a holiday. Shocked, we hugged and caught up on each other‘s lives. He was on his way to football practice, so he didn’t stay long. He was dedicated, fiery. He touched the lives of many young men. He served his country honorably at a time when many frowned upon it. Rest in peace, my friend. Well done.

My thanks to the young woman who bought January Valentine's Sweet Dreams and to the other kind folks who made purchases today. 
Vic's 4th Novel: http://tinyurl.com/bszwlxh
Vic's 3rd Novel: http://tinyurl.com/7e9jty3
Vic's Website: http://members.tripod.com/vic_fortezza/Literature/
Vic's Short Story Collection (Print or Kindle): http://www.tiny.cc/Oycgb
Vic's 2nd Novel: http://tinyurl.com/6b86st6
Vic's 1st Novel: http://tiny.cc/94t5h
Vic's Screenplay on Kindle: http://tinyurl.com/cyckn3
Vic’s Short Story on Kindle: http://tinyurl.com/k95k3nx