I remember the day Aaron showed up at the CNA Softball Tryouts. He was an amazing athlete and, although he wasn't a softball player at that time, I very quickly knew that he would play CF and bat at the top of the order for that team. Aaron worked hard to master his position! The early years were rough, a lot of bad teams and losing seasons, but we became great friends and worked hard to make the situation better, practicing hard and recruiting strategically to improve the roster. Then it started to happen..., winning, often, and then repeatedly. We had our own brand of the game, a bunch of average Joe's beating everyone in our path, playing small-ball, mostly walks & singles (i.e turned into doubles by Slota, Murph, ShMurph, Lane & Bladek), and the odd bomb from Kuhn, Fleury, Kuenster, Kells or Hiss, to name a few. At our peak, we won 5 championships in 6 softball seasons during 2005 & 2006. We went to the bar after every game, which was probably overkill, but we enjoyed being together, and were always working to improve our craft. We had two chants we would always say when breaking the huddle, before taking the field at our games, and they were 1. "CNA, All The Way" and, then later on, 2. "1-2-3, Happy Hour". Anyone who was ever in one of those huddles, knows the ferocity with which we broke those huddles. I remember those days with fondness, they were some of the best memories of our lives!!!
Aaron moved with a quiet confidence. He was a great friend and he was reliable. He was generous with his time and you could always count on him, no matter what you needed. He went with me to my Bldg on the west-side when I needed help over there, then Aaron & Stephanie came up to my summer home for a weekend with my family, we had a blast. He had a great sense of humor and he enjoyed a good banter back and forth. He loved all our traditional Irish music, especially the Furey Brothers - "Dublin", he would always sing that to me. We had a great time at their wedding down in Corpus Christi. After that, I guess it was time for us to grow up and we got busy starting our families. By the grace of God, we were able to re-connect through Fantasy Football over the past couple years, and it was a lot of fun to get that old group back together. He was so proud of his son Jackson, and he would talk about him often. An accomplished and impressive young man, Jackson was 'a chip off the old block' and Aaron taught him everything he knew, and we all knew that was a lot.
Aaron, my brother, your time here was short and I regret that we were not able to make that reunion happen. May Almighty God have mercy on your soul, and until we meet again, may the good Lord hold you and your family, in the palm of his hand. Rest In Peace Aaron O'Brien Slota, I look forward to meeting you again, when my time here is done!!!
With Love,
Murph & The Happy Hour Softball Crew
