Video report
- For their own good
 Fifty years ago, they were screwed-up kids sent to the Florida School for Boys to be straightened out. But now they are screwed-up men, scarred by the whippings they endured. Read the story and see a video and portrait gallery.
- More video reports
|
News
Fill out this form to email this article to a friend
Yankee fan has an offer for haters
Fed up with "hate" vandalism, he'll leave Port Richey for the right price.
By THOMAS LAKE, Times Staff Writer
Published September 6, 2007
|
Fred Slaven kneels beside the "For Sale" sign in his front yard. Slaven is the Yankees fan whose flag was recently burned, is trying to sell the Port Richey house he and his wife live in. Asking price: $125,000.
|
 |
|
[Times photo: Mike Pease]
|
PORT RICHEY - You have tried theft. You have tried arson. You have publicly encouraged him to find the interstate and head north. But listen here, Yankee-haters. If you really want Fred Slaven gone, you will need a stronger weapon. Money. Slaven blames you for all this. He is convinced you stole the New York Yankees vanity plate off his car about a month ago. He is sure you set fire to the Yankees flag flying in front of his house last week. And he wants to move back to New York, to get away from people like you. But first he has to sell the house. It is a two-bedroom ranch with a fenced back yard and a one-car garage. He says it is perfect for a young couple or a pair of snowbirds. He wants $125,000. He would also like you to know that he has been talking to a civil-rights attorney. He thinks you've committed a hate crime against him, and he won't stand for it. He wants to see special legislation passed regarding sports-related hate crimes. His wife, Donna, also a steadfast Yankees fan, would like to say that she and her family are not loud and not rude and not obnoxious and not idiots, despite what you have said. She points out that we are all Americans here, and that if you would just take some time to get to know her, you might change your mind. If you're interested in the house, you can reach Fred and Donna Slaven by e-mail. The address is jeterific2001@aol.com Yes, it means what you think it means. Note to those unfamiliar with pro baseball: the e-mail address refers to Derek Jeter, the Yankees' All-Star shortstop. No, you don't have to pretend you're someone else. Slaven says he doesn't hate you. Thomas Lake can be reached at tlake@sptimes.com or toll-free at 1-800-333-7505, ext. 6245.
[Last modified September 5, 2007, 21:45:04]
Share your thoughts on this story
Comments on this article
|
by Elizabeth
|
09/07/07 08:26 PM
|
|
Hate crime? Hate Crime? Oh you have got to be kidding, right?
And by the way, Seminoles were not the only true native Floridians. Seminoles were composed of the cast-offs from other tribes, along with escaped slaves from the sugar fields.
|
|
by Jim
|
09/07/07 05:30 PM
|
|
Jim, please go back we would like our swamp back. Thanks for the strip malls and traffic. Oh and I bet it was a RedSox fan from Boston. A Dray fan doesnt have the time for that nonsense
|
|
by Steve
|
09/07/07 04:30 PM
|
|
It seems the polite South is a myth. However the commenters miss the point - while they have the right to post hateful comments, no one has the right to damage another's property - and doing so repeatedly is harrassment.
|
|
by terry
|
09/07/07 04:00 PM
|
|
you go fred and donna - it's really sad to think that you would have to move back to ny to be safe in your home. i'm a die hard yankee fan - have been for 30 plus years - GO YANKEE'S!!!!!!!!!!
|
|
by Rick
|
09/07/07 01:50 PM
|
|
WE ARE ALL AMERICANS == CANT WE ALL GET ALONG?
|
|
by Troy
|
09/07/07 12:32 PM
|
|
1. I'm surprised anybody still follows baseball at all, let alone enough to go out and destroy someone else's collectible. 2. Guys are in Iraq getting their legs blown off to protect dolts like these vandals and 80% of the people leaving comments.
|
|
by Stephanie
|
09/07/07 12:13 PM
|
|
KIMMY YOU NAILED IT.
|
|
by donna
|
09/07/07 10:17 AM
|
|
kissell it was reported to the sheriffs office and i have a case number, what are you trying to say?? you have to be kidding me right??
|
|
by Jim
|
09/07/07 09:36 AM
|
|
I love how everyone says go back. Almost all bloodlines can be traced back to NE. The true Floridians are Seminoles, so you have no right to tell someone that. Let the NY/NJ/PA/DE/MD ppl be; w/out us, it wouldn't be paradise, it'd still be swamp!
|
|
by Ryan
|
09/07/07 09:31 AM
|
|
All I have to say about this is that the Devil Rays are starting to gain a well-deserved fan base and I'm looking forward to the rivalry that makes the Bucs-Eagles hate look childish. Go Rays!!!
|
|
by kissell
|
09/07/07 08:10 AM
|
|
Is there anything on paper to prove what he claims? I live close to him and have not heard about this.....I wonder...
|
|
by David
|
09/07/07 01:56 AM
|
|
Am I the first one to call HOAX?
http://www.bugsandcranks.com/tampa-bay-devil-rays/chalk-denies-involvement-in-tampa-area-anti-yankee-hate-crime-declares-shenanigans/
|
|
by Ed
|
09/07/07 12:30 AM
|
|
To Kathleen: you asked "what happen to polite Southern Hospitality and manners??"
Here is your answer....All the New Yorkers moved in!
|
|
by Dan
|
09/06/07 09:50 PM
|
|
It's not about a hate crime against sports, or race, or gender etc. It's just hate itself, in it's ugliest form.
You see when we had the two great commandments taught in the open, the world wasnt filled with haters. Now hater, hate that too.
|
|
by Yankee Fan Too
|
09/06/07 09:38 PM
|
|
I'm a veteran, and I'm also a Yankee fan...I was also raised in Florida. Are you all saying that in this country we, as Americans can't root for our preferred team. What county are we in? Are you sure you are in the U.S., America? Sounds like ...
|
|
by BOB
|
09/06/07 09:13 PM
|
|
Yankee Go Home Lmao >>>>>>>>>>>>>>
Enough Said Ty
|
|
by Irene
|
09/06/07 08:18 PM
|
|
He'll leave for the right price??? good luck selling even if you did got a free ad to sale. I was born in NY, But I love Florida. Ny has more hate crimes then Fl does. Wake up and smell the snow when you get there lol
|
|
by newyorkerforever
|
09/06/07 08:16 PM
|
|
I would love to move back up north. I was dragged here with the family. Unfortunatly, being the big cost of living difference your stuck with us so deal with it. I have met few native floridians, without New York this state would still be swamp land!
|
|
by Ray
|
09/06/07 08:15 PM
|
|
Him and his wife might not be bad Yankee fans, but guess he's not there in the Trop to see how his "brethren" act. Red Sox fans are coming close (if not worse) to acting like Yankee fans too.
|
|
by The Floridian
|
09/06/07 07:46 PM
|
|
I was having a bad day until I came across this story. It is so great to know that giving them a taste of their own medicine will send them running back home. Now we just gotta pick up the pace a little and get florida back!
|
|
by danielle
|
09/06/07 06:59 PM
|
|
give these people a break, will ya?? put yourself in they're shoes. would you like it to be done to you?? hate crime all the way....i hope they do get somewhere with this, so it doesn't happen to anyone else.
|
|
by donna
|
09/06/07 06:57 PM
|
|
all are missing the whole point, a fire could have burnt down my home, that is the point. except for the positive comments, everyone else is all talk. SHOW ME THE MONEY BABY, SHOW ME THE MONEY. i'm sick of all your negative comments. they mean nothin
|
|
by Yankee Fan
|
09/06/07 06:49 PM
|
|
If you're not a native Floridian, you're probably a former NY resident. Show some respect for crying out loud. Destroying someone's property REGARDLESS of motive is juvinile and pathetic. And I've seen pleanty of native FL residents who can't drive!!
|
|
by Patrick
|
09/06/07 06:44 PM
|
|
Does the Times get sales commission when he sells his house after this blatant ad?
|
|
by Pat
|
09/06/07 06:38 PM
|
|
my family is from St. Pete. We live in Md. and are fervent TB Lightening fans. My son plays ice hockey for Philly little flyers-when we play teams from n.y and n.j. the parents wearing Yankees logo anything are usually the most obnoxious in the rink.
|
|
by CPB
|
09/06/07 05:54 PM
|
|
LOSERS HATE WINNERS. THE PEOPLE THAT BURNED THAT FLAG ARE DEFINITELY LOSERS WITH A SMALL PERSONAL PART SUFFERING FROM E.D. LAST TIME I CHECKED DESTRUCTION OF PRIVATE PROPERTY AND TRESPASSING IS AGAINST THE LAW EVEN FOR JEALOUS, ENVYOUS, LOSERS.
|
|
by jim
|
09/06/07 05:37 PM
|
|
Just like a Yankee fan to sell his convictions for a buck. Good luck
|
|
by john
|
09/06/07 05:30 PM
|
|
hey RB you are a Moron how do we know this wasn't a Tigers fan or Mets fan you idiot second this team is 10years old how old are the Yankees? In time this team will compete and stop accusing d-ray fans for something a punk kid probably did.
|
|
by ron
|
09/06/07 05:27 PM
|
|
hey sal I didn't vandalize anything so shut up and i don't like "your" kind. Idiot
|
|
by tim
|
09/06/07 05:23 PM
|
|
hey dean you live here too so I guess that makes you King of the Morons
|
|
by Lori
|
09/06/07 05:14 PM
|
|
I'm from NJ and am a Yankee hater, but this man has every right to root for his team and not have his property destroyed. Sure, I'd give him a "rasberry" as I drove past his house, but not set fire to the flag! He deserves a free home for sale ad!!
|
|
by Denise
|
09/06/07 04:53 PM
|
|
To kathleen, this isn't the "south" everyone thinks about. This is more or less a melting pot of midwesterners and northerners. It is rare to find true floridians and even then, it isn't like Georgia or Alabama.
|
|
by Paul
|
09/06/07 04:11 PM
|
|
I'll buy the house for 75 cents.
|
|
by md
|
09/06/07 04:07 PM
|
|
where's George's money ? If he can buy Clemens, he can pony up another $125K to help a couple "HATED" fans head back north to drive slow.
|
|
by Big Ray
|
09/06/07 03:48 PM
|
|
If I cheer for the Bucs and Rays and somebody comes to the games and doesn't, will the Times help me sell my home? Further, will you assist with moving costs too. I'm sure I have some type of civil right violated. GIMME A BREAK!!!!!
|
|
Subscribe to the Times
Click here for daily delivery
of the St. Petersburg Times.
|
News
Print
Email story
Comment
Letter to the editor
