Among the most revered accolades in the professional pastime is the Lou Gehrig Memorial Award. First bestowed in 1955 (to Alvin Dark), it is a recognition sponsored by the Phi Delta Theta International Fraternity - a collegiate brotherhood in which Lou Gehrig was a member when he attended Columbia. This glorious citation has been awarded annually without interruption to the present, and its recipients have included such diamond greats as Gil Hodges, Cal Ripken Jr., Tony Gwynn, Dale Murphy, Pee Wee Reese, Willie Stargell, John Franco, Curt Schilling and Ernie Banks. The common thread bonding these Lou Gehrig Memorial Award members is that they were all major figures in their professional calling. But equally, they were good guys, all dedicated practitioners of civic responsibility.

In that spirit, 1981's winner of the Lou Gehrig Memorial Award was Ron Cey. By '81, Cey was a patriarch in his professional milieu. As well, he had demonstrated a consistent and generous philanthropy - in a word, he was a model citizen. This award, then, ranks among his most prized acknowledgements. In its dimension and crafting, the Lou Gehrig Award is reminiscent of a Hall of Fame plaque.