September 28, 2006

Recently I had the chance to share some time with some real basketball junkies out of Columbus, Ohio area. Wow, Mike Lenhart and Jim Frauenberg love their Buckeyes and we had dinner down in St. Armond's Circle and breakfast the next day at the Broken Egg. It was part of the ESPN auction where fans paid for items to raise money for the Jimmy V Foundation for cancer research.

Frauenberg is the president of Check Smart, a check cashing company while Lenhart is his partner. Also joining us was Jim's son Jamie, who graduated Penn State but remains a Buckeye fan. Mike's son, Mike Jr. was also with us and he is a real sports fanatic; he could quote all sorts of player statistics.

They were excited about Troy Smith and the Buckeyes being No. 1 on the gridiron. They were also looking forward to Thad Matta and the hoops squad, psyched about going to see their team take on North Carolina later in the year.

These guys are special because they love to give back. They are dedicated people and their generosity was appreciated. They donated $25,000 to the Jimmy V. Foundation and they also received autographed basketballs, T-shirts and books.

Let me tell you, I had as good a time as they did. My wife Lorraine told me they were people who never forgot where they came from, fans of the game and of living life to the fullest. They had so much passion.

It was a winning situation for all of us. I send my sincerest thanks to the Fraunberg's and Lehnart's for giving dollars to the V Foundation.

If you want to make a donation, please call 1-800-4-JIMMY-V. My friends, we need to beat this dreaded disease.

Dick Vitale coached the Pistons and the University of Detroit before broadcasting ESPN's first college basketball game in 1979. Send a question for Vitale for possible use on ESPNEWS.