David Ortiz, the retired Red Sox slugger known as Big Papi, has been scheduled to visit the University of Massachusetts Boston on Sept. 13. Ortiz is expected to give the keynote address at the Freshman Investiture Ceremony, the official welcoming to the class of 2021. The event will take place on the third floor of the Campus Center in the Ballroom. According to UMass Boston News, students who attend will also receive 2021 pins and possibly signatures by Ortiz.
David Ortiz played for the Boston Red Sox from 2003 until 2016, when he retired. He has been nationally recognized as a Red Sox legend. Ortiz’s visit to UMass Boston was originally scheduled for May 4.
Since Ortiz’s retirement, he has been visiting other universities and plans to visit more this upcoming school year. Ortiz visited Boston University this past May, where he was offered an honorary doctorate during the 2017 commencement ceremony.
According to a Breaking News report published by Masslive.com, Ortiz was also “honored for his charitable work through the David Ortiz Children’s Fund (DOCF)” at the BU commencement. The DOCF, according to their website, is a charity dedicated to “helping children in New England and the Dominican Republic who do not have access to the critical pediatric services they need.”
The organization is partners with the Mass General Hospital for Children as well as the World Pediatric Project. The mission statement also highlights the increased “number of children receiving life-saving surgeries.”
Ortiz has been making several appearances within the last year to universities, usually as a featured speaker. In April, Ortiz made an appearance at UMass Dartmouth’s Scholarship Dinner. The dinner, officially recognized as the University of Massachusetts Dartmouth Center for Marketing Research Celebrity/Scholarship Dinner, took place at the Venus De Milo in Swansea, MA with over 600 attendees, according to the Boston Herald.
At the event, Ortiz opened up about his family life, his native roots as a Dominican, and his past career as a Red Sox player. According to the Boston Herald’s article published on April 26, Ortiz addressed the crowd about his career, mentioning that “he would not have become the future Hall of Famer he is, had he not played in Boston with their passionate fans. It reminded him of the passion for baseball in the Dominican Republic, and is nothing like what he experienced with his first big-league team, Minnesota.”
Ortiz’s expected visit at UMass Boston on Sept. 13 will be free to all freshman. For any updates regarding the event, interested audiences are to refer to the UMass Boston Events page for any updates or details.