Jenny Stone, widow of Lt. Shannon Stone, who died after a fall at the Ballpark in Arlington, issued a statement of thanks on Tuesday via the Brownwood Bulletin.
Stone fell more than 20 feet while trying to catch a ball lobbed into the stands by Rangers outfielder Josh Hamilton. Stone had taken his young son Cooper to the game, and had even bought the 6-year-old a glove on the way to the ballpark in hopes of catching a foul ball.
The statement is listed in italics below in its entirety:
Monday we said goodbye to a wonderful man. Shannon was truly a great husband, father, son, brother, uncle, firefighter, and friend. While we have been overwhelmed with sadness by his death, we have also been overwhelmed by the outpouring of support and sympathy that we have received, from complete strangers as far away as New Zealand, to the former president of the United States of America, to our closest friends and family. While we will never forget that horrible night, we also will never forget the gentleman from Hawley, Texas, who protected Cooper that evening and came to pay his respects on Sunday. We will never forget the new friend Shannon, Cooper and I had just made on our recent camping trip to Destin, Florida, who traveled from Louisiana to pay his respects. We will never forget all the firefighters and policemen and women and hospital staff who were there that night. We are incredibly thankful for the outpouring of love from Shannon's brother firefighters, the City of Brownwood, First United Methodist Church, Texas Motor Speedway, firefighters from all over Texas, and from everyone in our community who brought food, stopped by, stood on the roadside and blessed us with prayers. And, of course, we have been supported and held up by our family and friends, who have stayed by our side for the last four days. Thank you is not enough, but we are truly thankful.
We are also thankful for Nolan Ryan, Josh Hamilton, the Texas Rangers, the Rangers fans, and all baseball fans, which have showed such concern and compassion. While I was certainly surprised to hear Nolan Ryan on my phone on Friday morning, I was not surprised that he would act just like we all see him, as a true Texas gentleman. Josh Hamilton remains Cooper's favorite baseball player, the Texas Rangers will always be our team, and baseball will always be our favorite game.
Again, we are so very thankful, appreciative, and overwhelmed by all of the support we have received. Shannon loved going to watch the Rangers and he loved Cooper. And, at the very end, he lived life to its fullest, doing something he loved.
Shannon Stone was laid to rest Monday.
There are several memorial funds that have been set up for the Stone family. You can see a complete list of them here.
