The Buckinghams in Concert

The pride of Chicago’s South Side, the Jackie Robinson West Little League Baseball team, is deserving of best wishes and congratulations for their outstanding achievement in becoming the 2014 U.S.Champions in the Little League World Series. Photo courtesy of Chicago's ABC7.com web site Little did these youngsters dream, when they picked up their first baseball, after having watched their first Cubs or White Sox game, that they’d be the ones to represent our city to the rest of the United States and be named “the best of the best”! Respect and thanks go out to each of the parents and the families of the young players and the tremendous coaching staff who have sacrificed hours, days, weeks, months and years being mentors to these wonderful children. Jackie Robinson made such a sterling contribution to the sport that we love, so it’s fitting that our Chicagoland youth bear the name of America’s favorite #42. So often we divide our city by geography as South, North or West suburbs

It's not every day that a kid from Chicago grows up watching TV and one day is on it, playing music as part of a band that will become important first in Chicago, and then will see national acclaim, including days of recording songs on a prestigious record label and then finding yourself looking at a red light belonging to a camera live on CBS's "The Ed Sullivan Show." It's also not every day that a kid can go to Wrigley Field with his dad and younger brother to watch the Cubs play baseball, and then grow up to have a once-in-a-lifetime chance to throw out a ceremonial first pitch for the team. Also, to be included in the same weekend celebration with Gale Sayers (#40) one of the greatest legends ever to play Chicago Bears football is simply surreal. That's what it was like last week for Carl Giammarese of The Buckinghams, surreal and splendid, a day to remember forever, July 11, 2014. Read the full story, including the video of Carl's pitch (thanks to S