As Felicia Mesh tried to summon the word, one of her four daughters alongside by the telephone offered "blur." Missy Leggio thinks of it as "fuzzy and hazy."
But amid their grief then and now, the widows of fallen firefighters John Mesh and Larry Leggio have a vivid, abiding appreciation of the night a city, a franchise and a packed stadium wrapped their arms around them.
And embraced the "angels in the outfield," as Alyssa Mesh calls her father and Leggio: Watching the final out of the World Series, John's brother, Jim, cried over what he felt destined to happen for the late Royals fans.
Certainly, there was a visceral connection in the unique energy at Kauffman Stadium before Game 5 of the 2015 American League Divisional Series against Houston. The tone of the night was framed by 38 members of the Kansas City Fire Department lining up on the first-base line 10 minutes before the game, the cheers and buzz amplifying when the families of Leggio and Mesh arrived nearby.
With the crowd animated by the drama of Game 4 and attuned to the tragedy of Mesh and Leggio only two days prior, its broader embrace of the families became as true figuratively as it was literally from Eric Hosmer, Mike Moustakas and Drew Butera. Following a 20-second moment of silence and the national anthem, each player moved over to give them hugs.
Overwhelming, the Meshes called that. Heartwarming, Missy Leggio said.
Stepping out of the line that way perhaps seemed a twist for members of a team whose catchphrase became "keep the line moving," particularly after their absurd Game 4 comeback.
But the overriding signature of those back-to-back World Series teams, which The Star is commemorating as Fox Sports Kansas City replays the 2015 championship postseason, was how real and human that group was ... and how entwined with the city it became. The synergy felt tangible at times.
For all the charming stories about engagements all over town between players and fans, though, nothing was more moving than the response to the deaths of Leggio and Mesh.
