Jeff Francoeur

Autism Light #221 is Jeff Francoeur. 

Jeff Francoeur is from Lilburn, Georgia. His fans have given him the nickname "Frenchy". Jeff Francoeur is a Major League Baseball player who currently plays outfield for the Kansas City Royals. On June 19, 2012, when the Kansas City Royals were on the road playing a game against the Houston Astros, Jeff Francoeur took time during batting practice to spend a moment with a 7 year old boy with autism. Jeff Francoeur is an Autism Light for that kind gesture.

On Wednesday, June 20, 2012, Tammy Blanchard Robertson of Houston, Texas posted the following letter on the Facebook page of the Kansas City Royals. She sent a special thank you to Jeff Francoeur for the attention he gave her 7 year old son who has autism. This letter explains the details of the moment when Jeff Francoeur was an Autism Light.

Dear Jeff Francoeur, 

Just last night my husband, daughter and 7 year old son attended the Royals vs Astros game here in Houston. My husband was born and raised in KC and our family lived there for 5 years before we were transferred to Houston. 

Last year my son was diagnosed with Autism. Going to large stadiums that are really loud are out of my sons comfort zone, we told him we were going to see the KC Royals and he was instantly excited. 

We made sure to get to the game early so that we could find our seats before the stadium filled up. We were lucky enough to get to the stadium while the Royals were having their batting practice. 

My husband told our son that he should call you over and that you may autograph his cap for him. As my son yelled with hope in his voice, you came jogging over to us. My son was so excited when he saw you coming over that he fell while trying to climb over the seats to the front row. It is rare that we see our son get excited over anything to do with sports as Autistic children tend to be more interested in books, and computers rather than sports. 

Our son stared up at you with tears in his eyes, you took the time to coddle him, ask his name and make him feel special. 

We just wanted to say thank you for not only taking the time to come over to see our son, but for signing his hat, and posing for a picture with him. It is truly a day that our son will never forget. You are a true role model, this was a day our family will always remember.  

In 2011 Jeff Francoeur received a 2 year contract extension to play with the Kansas City Royals through the 2013 season (Source). You can view the career highlights of Jeff Francoeur on his Website at www.jefffrancoeur.com. One of Jeff Francoeur's achievements is that his first major league hit on July 7, 2005, was a Home Run. Here is a video of his first Major League hit, when he was playing for the Atlanta Braves.


Kevin Kaduk of Big League Stew covered this story of Jeff Francoeur shining his light for a 7 year old boy with autism in a sports blog post titled Jeff Francoeur Shares Special Moment with Autistic Child. A photo of this Autism Light moment can be seen as part of that feature. You can also keep tabs on Jeff Francoeur at his Wikipedia page.Each of us has within us the power to shine our light for others, but Jeff Francoeur was uniquely positioned to make this difference to a boy with autism who attended a Major League Baseball game. Special thanks to Jeff Francoeur for helping make life brighter for a boy with autism and his family. Jeff Francoeur shows us how the simple act of giving a little bit of our time in life can make such a difference in the life of a person with autism.  Autism Light honors diverse heroes to the world of autism.
Photo: The photo of Jeff Francoeur is from the Wikipedia commons and is attributed to Keith Allison.