Happy Father's Day to all of you wonderful fathers out there!!!!

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A father's love defies boundaries
Siena hoops star Kenny Hasbrouck benefits from guidance of dad with MS



By PETE IORIZZO, Staff writer
First published: Sunday, June 15, 2008

When Jeffery Hasbrouck no longer could walk, he played basketball with his son from a wheelchair.
He drove Kenny to basketball practices in his specialized van, equipped with hand controls. Multiple sclerosis had taken his ability to use foot pedals.
     
Kenneth, he would say to his son, who is Kenny on highlight reels but always Kenneth when they're together in the car. Kenneth, he would say, if you work hard enough and practice long enough, someday you might earn a basketball scholarship.
Now that Kenny Hasbrouck is a team captain for Siena College, Jeffery watches many of his games from the front of Section 107 at Times Union Center, next to the Saints' bench.
Jeffery's condition robbed his ability to run, then to walk and then to perform some basic motor functions. But he continues to be a father in presence and voice, through counsel and advice and love.
"I have multiple sclerosis," Jeffery says. "But multiple sclerosis doesn't have me. I can't go out and play football, go out and play basketball like I used to. But I can talk. I love to go to Kenneth's games, because I can go and talk to him."
His voice is gentle, with a trace of the South. He tells stories that begin back in the day and end somewhere far away. He loves to talk.
For Father's Day, he tells his children to give more gifts to their mother. He says, "They've already given me more than I ever could imagine."
Kenny calls his father an inspiration. He was 4 the last time he saw his father walk without an aid. He remembers his father, already experiencing trouble walking, tripping over a curb and falling into aluminum garbage cans.
That began Jeffery's slow physical decline. He started using crutches, and he later required a wheelchair. Now, at age 57, he uses a motorized scooter.
Before his legs began to fail him, Jeffery stood a chiseled 6 feet, 3 inches, the same height as Kenny. Jeffery played for basketball teams during his time in the military as a technician. He served in Vietnam and later was stationed in Germany, where an accident changed his life.
Jeffery was repairing radar equipment when a machine malfunctioned, spewing microwaves and radiation into the surrounding area. Orders to flee came too late. Jeffery felt the heat on his back and head. Within a few years, his difficulties began.
Jeffery later was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis, a condition that affects the central nervous system with no cure and unclear causes. The family believes radiation exposure contributed to Jeffery's condition.
After receiving his diagnosis, Jeffery told the doctor, "Thank you for finally telling me what I have. Now I can move on."
Jeffery adapted and adjusted, using what he had. When he began losing coordination in his right hand, he learned to write and eat with his left.
His declining physical abilities forced him to give up some of his favorite pastimes, like home repair. So instead he taught his wife, Debbie. She installed a garbage disposal in their home, with Jeffery sitting behind her giving instructions.
He taught his sons to care for his yard, so they learned the value of hard work while his prized lawn stayed green."I haven't seen him break down ever and start crying," Kenny says. "I don't know if he does it on his own time, doesn't do it at all or what. But he's never done it front of us. He's never snapped at us because of his disabilities. He's never stopped coming to our games. And he's never slacked off as a father."
Jeffery encouraged sports in Kenny. He hoped it would keep him from the violence that engulfed other kids near their home in Capitol Heights, Md., east of Washington, D.C.
Kenny has been robbed several times and shot at twice. Some of his childhood friends deal drugs. But Kenny, at 21 the youngest of four Hasbrouck children, preferred basketball courts to street corners. He played on travel basketball teams from his early teenage years.
When Kenny struggled on the court, his father provided advice and perspective. As a teenager, Kenny played on a travel team that included some of the top players in the state. Sometimes he sat the bench.
Jeffery, who attended most practices and games, told his son, "Just watch and listen to your coach. Because when they need you, you better be ready."
They still talk about basketball. Jeffery follows the NBA, but he phones his son to lament how professional players make too much money. He calls the pros selfish and encourages his son to pass the ball. When Kenny says he wants to play in the NBA, Jeffery tells him to chase his dreams but not at the expense of earning his psychology degree.
They never talk about Jeffery's limitations. His wife says, "His scooter has never been a sad thing for our family."
When Kenny's sister ran for student government in high school, Jeffery taped a "Vote for Melinda" banner to the back of his scooter and drove through the school's corridors. Once during a trip to the beach, Jeffery sent his sons to drop off his motorized wheelchair at a kiosk; instead, the boys took it for a joyride.
"We weren't mad," his wife says. "We realized they weren't afraid of their father not being able to walk."
Jeffery's condition won't improve, but therapy and medication may slow or even stop his physical decline. He expresses hope that new technology will allow him to drive again within a few years.
Jeffery and Kenny talk by phone about once a week. They don't see each other much, because Kenny stays at Siena almost year-round to practice and take classes.
Kenny led his team to the NCAA Tournament this past basketball season. Jeffery flew to Tampa, Fla., to watch his son's games from courtside seats.
Kenny expects his father back in the stands this coming season, his voice cheering on and supporting his son, as it always has.
"I know it's been hard for him, even though he would never say it," Kenny says. "I appreciate everything he's done for me, and the way he's done it." Iorizzo can be reached at 454-5425 or by e-mail at piorizzo@timesunion.com.