MEMPHIS, Tenn — News of the passing of Baseball Hall of Famer, Hank Aaron bringing in a cascade of tributes from everywhere.
The 86 year old Aaron passed away in his sleep.
From Former President, Barack Obama, MLB players past and present and celebrities remembering an athlete who contributed greatly to the fabric of America on and off the field.
Born in Mobile, Alabama in the midst of the Great Depression Hank Aaron rose to break MLB's homerun record with his 755 homeruns in what was once the segregated south.
"We're not only talking about a transcendent baseball player. We're talking about a transcendent person in American history as well," said former Brave, Chipper Jones.
Despite the death threats and racism he experienced, Aaron was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1982, retiring in 1974 after 23 years in the game.
He would go on from the diamond to the front office of the Braves organization, another first.
Anybody who knew Aaron knew he cared for people.
"The greatest contribution I feel that I've made since I've been contribution I feel that I've made since I've been out of baseball is helping the 755 kids in my foundation. That's the Hank Aaron Chasing the Dream Foundation," Aaron once told WXIA News.
The foundation begun by Aaron and wife Billye would succeed in funding 755 scholarships kids across the U.S and hundreds more.
With barriers broken in the sports world, philanthropy would become the slugger's new mission serving on the board of the Boy & Girls Clubs of America.
"He is one of the most iconic figures in the history of America, but for the Boys & Girls Club he's Frank and our Hero," said Boys & Girls Club President, Frank Sanchez.
As a result the MLB would help fund $2-million in scholarships to the organization in 2007.
"He set the bar for not only what you should strive for as a baseball player, but what you should strive for as a human being," said Jones.