Finding Purpose When You Lose Your Identity
Dave Dravecky
In this inspiring podcast, former baseball star Dave Dravecky and Dr. Chuck F. Betters talk about how cancer destroyed Dave’s successful baseball career and his struggle to cope not only with the loss of his career but also with understanding his true identity.
In the 1980s, Dave Dravecky was a long-sought-after relief specialist. His pitching helped key the San Diego Padres' World Series run. After a few years in San Diego, Dravecky moved on to San Francisco, where he was a key part of their World Series run.
However, things in 1989 would take a bitter turn for the Youngstown, Ohio native. Experiencing weakness in his pitching arm, he was examined by the Giants team doctor. The doctor noticed a lump in Dravecky's arm and sent him to a specialist in New York. It was there that Dravecky learned his pitching arm was ripe with cancer. Draveckey underwent treatment in hopes of returning to baseball.
In September of 1989, Dravecky returned to the pitching mound, mere months after undergoing treatment for cancer. In one appearance, Draveckey's arm, weakened from treatment, snapped and broke while he delivered a pitch. He would re-break the same arm weeks later, celebrating his team's berth in the World Series.
Any full-time comeback for Dravecky would be forever denied when, in 1991, during a surgery to save his life, his pitching arm was amputated above the elbow. Dave Dravecky's plight inspired the Giants, though they were unable to overcome an earthquake and an ultra-powerful Oakland A's lineup. Dravecky retired officially from baseball after losing his arm. But his story was just beginning.
You can listen to an interview with Dave’s wife, Jan, titled: Blow Away the Dark Clouds, and her story in their journey.
You can download our Help & Hope App to listen to more stories to encourage you in your walk of faith.
Dave Dravecky is a best-selling author of numerous inspirational books, including his gripping story, Comeback, where he tells the story of how cancer destroyed his career as a long-sought-after relief specialist. In the ensuing years, Dave and his wife Jan established Endurance, a ministry to encourage those who are facing serious illness, loss, or depression.
Visit endurance.org, where you will find numerous resources designed especially for people battling cancer, depression, and grief.
