From left, Angelo Rotella, former Yankees pitcher Tommy John, Brian Dickinson Courage Award recipient Peter Cate, R.I. chapter president John Pagliarini and Kristina Rotella.

Constance Brown Constance Brown

Before Hall of Fame pitcher Jim “Catfish” Hunter died in 1999 from complications of the neurodegenerative disease Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis, he asked his baseball buddies to use their clout to push for research to find a cure.

Former Yankees pitcher Tommy John is one of Hunter’s friends who took up the battle against the illness, often referred to as Lou Gehrig’s disease. His efforts brought him to the Rhode Island Convention Center last Monday as the keynote speaker at the 11th Evening of Hope banquet put on by the ALS Association, Rhode Island chapter.

More than 350 guests attended the dinner, at which the Rotary Club of East Greenwich donated $41,000 from this year’s Scott Carlson Memorial Race. Dr. Judith Pratt and Dr. Robert Miller presented ALS chapter president John Pagliarini with the check.

During the live auction, auctioneer Sal Corio enticed bidding on such packages as a five-day vacation in Aruba (which went for $1,000), and Red Sox tickets (netting $900). The event raised $100,000 for the local ALS chapter.

“Let the people in public office know about this disease, and ask officials to give it attention,” said John, whose baseball record includes 288 wins, 26 Major League seasons and four World Series. He even has a surgical procedure named for him; halfway through his career, in the 1970s, he had experimental ligament replacement surgery on his elbow. It was a success, and allowed him to pitch for another 13 years. It has been performed many times since. “Talk about finding a cure for ALS as much as you can, and next year bring one person with you to this dinner.”

John, who is in his 60s and manages the Bridgeport, Conn., baseball team the Bluefish, spent much of the cocktail hour meeting guests. During his 20-minute speech, he said that “my hope is to draw as much attention to the cause as possible.”

Channel 6’s Jim Hummel was emcee; area nursing home owners Angelo and Kristina Rotella, of Smithfield, were honorary co-chairs.

Each year the event includes the presentation of the Brian Dickinson Courage Award to someone who has shown fortitude in the battle against the neurological disease, in which motor cells in the spinal cord and brain deteriorate. Dickinson was an editorial writer and columnist for The Providence Journal who died in 2002 after a long fight with ALS. This year’s award recipient was Peter Cate of Warwick. He attended with his wife, Elaine, and four children, Chris, Matt, Sarah and Nick.

Dickinson’s widow, Barbara, and her daughter-in-law Ruth, a nurse who took care of Brian, presented the award.

The funds raised will help support patient services including the multidisciplinary Louise Wilcox ALS clinic at Rhode Island Hospital.