Clemente Museum collecting supplies for Puerto Rico
A Pittsburgh museum devoted to Pirates legend Roberto Clemente is collecting supplies and money for victims in hurricane-ravaged Puerto Rico.
The Clemente Museum in Lawrenceville is teaming up with UPMC and Restaurant Depot for an open house from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. Sunday.
Items that are needed most include bottled water, batteries, diapers, first aid supplies and feminine hygiene products.
The donations can be dropped off at the Restaurant Depot parking lot at 100 35th St.
Guests will be able to tour the museum by making a $21 donation in honor of Clemente's uniform number, with the money going toward hurricane relief efforts.
Pittsburgh Mayor Bill Peduto praised the museum for its efforts to help hurricane victims in Clemente's native Puerto Rico.
“Roberto Clemente gave his life to support others,” Peduto said. “Pittsburgh owes it to Roberto and his family to do all we can to help the people of Puerto Rico.”
Hurricane Maria had 155-mph winds at landfall. The storm caused flooding that swept through entire communities, disabled radar and cell towers, and severely damaged the electrical grid in Puerto Rico.
Clemente, who played for the Pirates from 1955-72, was born in Carolina, Puerto Rico. He was the first Latin American player to be inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame.
Clemente died Dec. 31, 1972, in an airplane crash while transporting relief supplies from Puerto Rico to Nicaragua to help earthquake victims.
Each year, Major League Baseball gives out the Roberto Clemente Humanitarian Award in his honor.
The Clemente Museum is in the historic Engine House 25 on Penn Avenue, where the world's largest exhibited collection of baseball artifacts, artwork, literature, photographs, memorabilia and other material focusing on Clemente, his teammates, personal life and humanitarian causes are in display.
Tony LaRussa is a Tribune-Review staff writer. Reach him at 724-772-6368, tlarussa@tribweb.com or via Twitter @TonyLaRussaTrib.
