You'll remember Shannon Stone as the 39-year-old Brownwood firefighter and father who tumbled to his death while reaching for a ball during a July 2011 Rangers game. Kind of hard to forget. He and his 6-year-old son, Cooper, are immortalized in bronze outside Rangers ballpark.
A fitting tribute, the two-year-old statue is also apparently a killer place to put your opening-day empties.
A photo of the debris-covered pedestal went viral last night, prompting a suitable dose of tut-tutting from various corners:
Dear Texas Rangers fans, can you please not turn a statue memorializing a fan who died at the park while with his son into a garbage dump?
— Scott Van Pelt (@notthefakeSVP) April 1, 2014See also: Texas Rangers to Honor Shannon Stone, and Son, With Bronze Statue at Ballpark Next Season
In response to the photo, the club accurately noted that the ballpark on Monday welcomed "thousands of opening day fans, many of whom had been tailgating" and that "large amounts, of cans, bottles, and other items that are prohibited in the park accumulated at all entrances."
"The debris on the statue was (sic) removed in a timely manner but it should not have been allowed there in the first place," their statement said. "The Rangers Fans statue is a cherished component of the ballpark and the club will make certain this situation does not occur in the future."
To properly honor the deceased, the beer containers should be full and contain something better than Miller Lite.
Send your story tips to the author, Eric Nicholson.
