It was a family reunion of epic proportions on May 8 at the Liberty Baseball Stadium when more than 30 members of the Bream family, including 19 Liberty University graduates or current students, gathered for the dedication of two areas within the facility before the second game of the Flames’ final home series.
“We’ve had 19 Breams that have come through Liberty, and this has been a place that has grown us physically but at the same time grown us spiritually for the best,” said former Major League Baseball first baseman Sid Bream, the first family member to attend Liberty, from 1978-81. Five others have played baseball for the Flames, and one played for the women’s basketball and volleyball teams.
The family was honored for its legacy gifts with the naming of the Leroy G. Bream Reception Area in the entrance to the Flames coaches’ offices and the Sid Bream Radio Booth in the stadium press box.
The Bream family’s relationship with Liberty started when Leroy Bream responded to a request from Liberty’s founder, Dr. Jerry Falwell, for the names of outstanding Christian athletes who might be interested in attending Liberty. “Uncle Leroy” wrote a recommendation letter to Dr. Falwell regarding his nephew, Sid, and that letter was passed on to Al Worthington, Liberty’s founding baseball coach, who contacted local scouts in Pennsylvania.
A scholarship offer was extended without even having seen Bream play in person, but the scouting reports proved to be true as Sid Bream went on to set numerous Liberty Baseball offensive records. He was selected by the Los Angeles Dodgers in the second round of the 1981 Major League Baseball Draft and thrived over an 11-year career, primarily with the Pittsburgh Pirates and Atlanta Braves.
“It has been a blessing to be able to stay in touch with Liberty and to see the growth of all that has taken place,” Sid Bream said. “To go from the days of meeting in a tent to where it is today, it is unbelievable how God has been faithful to this place, and I just continue to pray that God will keep His hand on it and continue to change lives through this school.”
