Fred Hornkohl (1951-2016): Donations to Rizzo Family Foundation

[ctcf]

Wow, just saw the news. I was fortunate enough to talk to Fred a month or two back on the phone and wish I had realized it would be the last time. I recall that back then the prognosis was somewhat longer than it turned out to be.

 

Fred was genuinely one of the nicest people I've met and helped facilitate my, to date, only visit to Wrigley field back in 2007 to see the Cubs get swept out of the playoffs by the Diamondbacks. I believe I shared his home with Soccer10k that trip. He was as kind and gracious a host as someone could be to a goofy, broke 20 year old they'd put up with on the internet for the last 4 years. He even came to pick me up from the airport and had the car stall out on the highway and yet remained cool and friendly throughout.

 

I imagine that of the folks here, he probably met some of the most NSBBers of anyone, which says a lot about his approach to this place and his personality. He was one of the most integral parts of this board and it's hard to imagine it without him. It feels wrong that we should even have to.

 

He was, above all, a kind and decent man and someone I'm proud to call a friend.

 

RIP Fred.

[CaliforniaRaisin]

Should we change the swear word filter from [expletive] to horsefeathers?

[ctcf]

Should we change the swear word filter from [expletive] to horsefeathers?

 

I second this motion.

[mul21]

Should we change the swear word filter from [expletive] to horsefeathers?

 

I'm in favor.

[NotSoSober]

Should we change the swear word filter from [expletive] to horsefeathers?

Yes

[historycub]

Wow. Condolences to his family and everyone here.

I've lurked around here for years and always loved his collection of stats and never-ending hopes.

 

I saw that someone different did a Hornkohl post today but never thought or knew to make that connection. Sad thing to learn.

[TruffleShuffle]

Wow, just saw the news. I was fortunate enough to talk to Fred a month or two back on the phone and wish I had realized it would be the last time. I recall that back then the prognosis was somewhat longer than it turned out to be.

 

having had a close friend's mother and grandfather pass away since my last trip back to the US - sometimes it is actually better to not know. you enjoy the time that you had together. my friend's mom knew she was dying when i saw her a couple of months before she passed. we had a really nice time with her, my friend, and her grandchildren, just catching up and chatting like we always did. at first after she passed away i thought that i wished she had told me she was dying when i had seen her, but then i thought about what it would have been like if i'd known. the two times i saw her on that visit were clearly going to be the last time that i'd see her (since i was going back to australia), and those visits would have been filled with tears and sadness rather than the genuine happiness of seeing a friend.

 

i don't know how fred's last couple of months or years were, and i really don't need to know, but i truly hope that they were filled with happiness and with the love of all those who cared about him. by all accounts, he was a good man and deserved that much.

[UMFan83]

Wow, just saw the news. I was fortunate enough to talk to Fred a month or two back on the phone and wish I had realized it would be the last time. I recall that back then the prognosis was somewhat longer than it turned out to be.

 

Fred was genuinely one of the nicest people I've met and helped facilitate my, to date, only visit to Wrigley field back in 2007 to see the Cubs get swept out of the playoffs by the Diamondbacks. I believe I shared his home with Soccer10k that trip. He was as kind and gracious a host as someone could be to a goofy, broke 20 year old they'd put up with on the internet for the last 4 years. He even came to pick me up from the airport and had the car stall out on the highway and yet remained cool and friendly throughout.

 

I imagine that of the folks here, he probably met some of the most NSBBers of anyone, which says a lot about his approach to this place and his personality. He was one of the most integral parts of this board and it's hard to imagine it without him. It feels wrong that we should even have to.

 

He was, above all, a kind and decent man and someone I'm proud to call a friend.

 

RIP Fred.

 

I remember meeting you at that game but I didn't realize all the work Fred did to make it happen. Great story.

[weis21]

Here's my Fred story. I don't have a very personal story, but it still speaks volumes about him as a person, I believe

 

I don't remember the exact year (let's just call it 2008), but I'm fairly sure I had just graduated recently from my undergrad and was in grad school. Or maybe even earlier because years run together like weeks nowadays, but I digress. Anyway, I'm still here employed at East Carolina University in Greenville, NC and the Pirates are the mascot for ECU. My location at the time on my NSBB posts was "Pirate Country".

 

I wasn't an active poster nor did my posts really contribute much to the community. But, Fred PM'ed me one day and said, "I saw where your location is 'Pirate Country' and I have an extra ticket for the Cubs-Pirates game in Pittsburgh. Want to come?". I swear to Christ I would have gone but I was 11 hours away and just wasn't feasible. I have no doubt that I was just another dumb poster on this board - especially at that time. It floored me that he would reach out to me and offer me a ticket to a game.

 

It seems pretty trivial and in the grand scheme it is, but it stuck with me for sure. That gesture - especially after reading the other stories - meant and means so much to me.

 

He will surely be missed and I hate that I never got the chance to meet this amazing person. RIP

Edited September 13, 2016 by weis21

[CubmanPi]

Wow, just saw the news. I was fortunate enough to talk to Fred a month or two back on the phone and wish I had realized it would be the last time. I recall that back then the prognosis was somewhat longer than it turned out to be.

 

Fred was genuinely one of the nicest people I've met and helped facilitate my, to date, only visit to Wrigley field back in 2007 to see the Cubs get swept out of the playoffs by the Diamondbacks. I believe I shared his home with Soccer10k that trip. He was as kind and gracious a host as someone could be to a goofy, broke 20 year old they'd put up with on the internet for the last 4 years. He even came to pick me up from the airport and had the car stall out on the highway and yet remained cool and friendly throughout.

 

I imagine that of the folks here, he probably met some of the most NSBBers of anyone, which says a lot about his approach to this place and his personality. He was one of the most integral parts of this board and it's hard to imagine it without him. It feels wrong that we should even have to.

 

He was, above all, a kind and decent man and someone I'm proud to call a friend.

 

RIP Fred.

 

I remember meeting you at that game but I didn't realize all the work Fred did to make it happen. Great story.

I completely forgot that it was CT's fault the Cubs got swept.

[CaliforniaRaisin]

Should we change the swear word filter from [expletive] to horsefeathers?

 

I second this motion.

 

Okay, I changed most of the common swears.

 

horsefeathers!

[Tim]

Should we change the swear word filter from [expletive] to horsefeathers?

 

I second this motion.

 

Okay, I changed most of the common swears.

 

horsefeathers!

Awesome

[bhogg]

Holy cow, I've been around since 03 and Fred was always there, always positive, always fun.

 

Also, I had no idea his real name was Fred Hornkohl. . . .. .he will be missed :(

[MWV]

I've been lurking/posting here for over a decade. I wasn't fortunate enough to have known Fred personally. It's ironic to me that he's best know for his contributions to the game threads; most people who gain notoriety in that venue do so by being jerks. Fred seemed so effortlessly positive. My condolences to CubmanPi, Fred's family and all who cared for him. Insofar as one can miss a person they've never met, I'll miss Fred terribly.

[Omar]

Should we change the swear word filter from [expletive] to horsefeathers?

 

I second this motion.

 

Okay, I changed most of the common swears.

 

horsefeathers!

 

horsefeathers yes

[Ding Dong Johnson]

horsefeathers you

[MWV]

I had no idea his real name was Fred Hornkohl. . . .. .he will be missed :(

This is pretty much exactly what I'm talking about. He used his first and last name as his user name on a baseball message board.

A completely authentic guy.

[shnsajax]

Horrible news. RIP Fred, loved your contributions here.

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[Bob Dobbs]

This is a terrible loss, Fred was a good man and a good friend, I lost track of how many games I've seen with him, in at least 5 cities other than Chicago and Chicago as well...

 

I heard during tonight's game, in the 9th, just after Kyle gave up the no-no, it was a kick in the teeth, just after being kicked in the balls.

 

Andrew, my condolences to you and your family, and to all you NSBB folks who loved him too.

 

David

[TruffleShuffle]

Should we change the swear word filter from [expletive] to horsefeathers?

 

I second this motion.

 

Okay, I changed most of the common swears.

 

horsefeathers!

 

this is some good horsefeathers right here.

[Rob]

 

I second this motion.

 

Okay, I changed most of the common swears.

 

horsefeathers!

 

this is some good horsefeathers right here.

 

I have that awful Nelly and P. Diddy song stuck in my head, but with "horsefeathers" inserted in place of "tailfeathers"

 

[bbvideo=560,315]https://youtu.be/sH8vCzy1Mek?t=2m28s[/bbvideo]

[BCVM22]

Terribly sorry to hear about Fred today. A loss for all of us.

[Skeeter]

I logged back in to say goodbye to Fred. Haven't been on NSBB for years because reasons.

 

That is beside the point here. What I wanted to say is this:

 

Fred never had a bad word to say about anyone. I am not nearly that strong. Fred saw statistics before many of us did and he utilized them in ways some or all of us may have overlooked. His game threads and posts were always on point and always upbeat and positive.

 

Unfortunately I never met the man nor shared a beer but I made a special effort to come back here to honor Fred. For this reason:

 

Fred embodies us all and our families. We are Family. We disagree daily but we share a common love.

 

Our team.

 

RIP you beautiful man. You will be missed and remembered.

[wvcbxl]

This sucks. :(

My condolences to his family; it goes without saying that he will be dearly missed on this site.

[pitchcs]

 

Fred with some NSBBers (including me) after what I'm pretty sure was a Cubs win in 2009

 

Thanks for posting this pic UM. That was a good day hanging out and I remember we went to Mystic Celt afterwards.

 

Fred loved talking to my dad about small Illinois towns and the truck stops he would frequent. Just a genuine salt of the earth man who loved the Cubs.

 

2016 World Series is for Fred. RIP buddy