At 5 years old, Jack Hogan plays in the local Cal Ripken Instructional League for the Dodgers, but his favorite team is the New York Yankees.
Like many boys his age, Jack would like to play ball in the regular leagues. But he may never get the chance.
He is suffering from a condition called retinitis pigmentosa, an eye disease in which there is damage to the retina. The damage gets worse (progresses) over time.
Jeanne Hogan, Jack’s mother, said she and her husband noticed something wrong with Jack when he was approximately 2.5 years old. One day, he was playing with a ball and it was sitting beside him, but he seemed unable to find it. This is one of the symptoms of the disease – loss of peripheral or side vision.
“They just did it on their own.” – Jeanette Hogan
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The main sign of the disease is the presence of dark lines in the retina. As the disease gets worse, side (peripheral) vision is gradually lost. The condition may eventually lead to blindness, but usually not complete blindness. According to several sources, signs and symptoms often first appear in childhood, and severe vision problems develop in early adulthood.
The Hogans hope the disease stops where it is with Jack. But they are also concerned by the fact that this is a genetic disease and that their other children are at risk. Two younger boys, Owen and Cole, could be diagnosed with it, as well.
The best hope for all three of their children is that research might find a treatment that will work in the future.
Young Jack loves sports, but he’s now learning Braille in case he loses his eyesight.
Shawn, a Bayonne police officer, and Jeanette work with the Foundation of Fighting Blindness’s Northern New Jersey Chapter to learn all they can about the disease and research.
‘Team Jack Attack’
On May 23, they participated in Vision Walk to help raise money for research. As a result,
Team Jack Attack raised $55,000 for the 2010 New York City walk, much of which came through the sports leagues Jack is involved with. More than 140 people walked on Jack Attack’s behalf.
The Bayonne Police Emerald Society also hosted a poker tournament, in which more than 200 people were involved.
The Bayonne Cal Ripken Baseball League also donated some of the proceeds of its “Beefsteak” dinner to support Team Jack Attack.
“The dinner is normally just a night out for the players’ parents to relax,” says Jeanette. “We didn’t ask for them to do it. We didn’t reach out to them. They just did it on their own. It’s just amazing. They even raffled off a pair of Yankees tickets.”
Here is list of some people and companies that donated to Team Jack Attack. There were also over 300 individual donations made:
22nd Street Meat Market, Bayonne Community Bank, Bayonne FMBA Local 11, Bayonne Library School Staff, Bayonne Memorial Home, Bayonne Police Emerald Society, Bayonne Police Superior Officers, Big Apple, Brian Cannizzaro Memorial Fund, Café Bello, Cal Ripken, Concerned Citizens of Bayonne, Conway Cleaners, East Coast Caterers, Eddie’s Bar, Emil Massa, Foley’s Funhouse, Friends of Special Children, Harry’s Liquors, Hired Guns, Houlihan’s Restaurant, John’s Midtown Tavern, Judicke’s Bakery, Kuhl’s Tavern, National Soda, the New York Giants, the New York Yankees, PBA Local No. 7, Pizza Masters, Philip G. Vroom School, Royal Wine Distributors, San Vito’s Restaurant, ShopRite, St. Andrew’s Parish, Starting Point, Star of the Sea Council, Knights of Columbus, Ten East, Tony May’s, Triangle TV, The Venice, Victoria TV, Vital Signs, the Calverley and Page families, the Duffy family, Jennifer Mulcahy and Johnson & Johnson, Jane Nide, and the Ryan family.
Al Sullivan may be reached at asullivan@hudsonreporter.com.