Quick update

Sue has a new email address - please use hruskasue@charter.net

For those of you that missed the recent PB article on Sue here it is:

Pressbox View: Nice to hear 'Take Me Out to the Ball Game'
4/14/2010 8:56:26 AM

By Every time Justin Morneau hits a home run, Sue Hruska calls her son, Drew, with the news. OK, not so much when the Twins are playing on the West Coast (yawn) but you get the picture, she is a big, big Justin Morneau fan.And an even bigger Twins fan. We'll call her a fanatic."I just love 'em,'' she says. "My dad introduced me to baseball and I've been a fan ever since. He died in 1986 (Lowell Indrelle was 50 when he died), and unfortunately that was the year before the Twins won the World Series.''

Hruska makes sure she listens or watches as many games as possible."Tuesday was a bad day for me,'' she said. "The Twins had the day off.''An even bigger thrill is watching them in person.The Hruskas have partial season tickets and attended the April 3 exhibition at spanking new Target Field against the St. Louis Cardinals.Her first impression?"Wow.''On the scorecard, the Twins-Cardinals game was meaningless, but to Sue Hruska it was a milestone. A dream come true. A goal accomplished.You'lll see.

Hruska, 52, was diagnosed with terminal brain cancer in September of 2006."I was afraid that I would never see the Twins play an outside game in Minnesota,'' she said. "I told my son, if I'm still alive in 2010 we're going to the opener. Or I'll be an angel in the outfield."That was my goal.''

Hruska attended the game with her husband Ed and Sue's sister Nancy and husband Todd.Remember, when Sue was diagnosed in 2006, ground for Target Field had not even been broken.And when the doctor says the word, terminal, well, who knows?"You can't imagine the feeling walking into Target Field,'' she said. "The first thing I did when I got to my seat was to praise God. Next I visualized my dad being here. He would have loved to share this experience with me.''And then?"Then I thought of the next generation of all the young boys and girls who will be enjoying outdoor baseball with their moms, dads, grandmas and grandpas.''That would be Sue Hruska. Even given a terminal sentence, she was still thinking of others."

One thing about being terminal, things don't always have to be as bad as it sounds,'' she said, again bringing in a baseball analogy. "It hasn't always been easy following the Twins all these years. There's been years where it's been awfully frustrating.''Speaking of frustration, at one time, the tumors had vanished but cruelly reappeared on both sides of her head earlier this year. In late January she underwent even more surgery."She's been an inspiration to all of us,'' Ed said.

Now she takes one "huge'' dose pf chemotherapy once a month."After three-and-a-half years, I can handle the chemotheraphy,'' she said. "I still get tired but what can you do?''She's also losing some of her vision."When I was at Target Field, it was tough following the ball,'' she said. "You can hear what's happening and look around but I couldn't find the ball."It's OK on TV as long as the cameras directly follow the action but if I can't see it, I can still listen. And I do.''

Terminal is the cruelest word in the dictionary but for now, at least, the good guys are winning.Last fall Sue attended the wedding of her daughter, Holly, and now she met her goal of watching an outdoor baseball game in Minnesota.And next month Drew gets married.Can't wait."We're so excited,'' she said.And she's determined to make a return trip to Target Field""Go Twins,'' she said. "This is going to be a great season.''


A special thanks to Paul Christian for taking the time to visit with Sue and write this story. Ed