Former Chicago Athletes: Where Are They Now?
What do star athletes do after their playing days are over? We tracked down a onetime Bears cornerback who’s now a practicing dentist and a missionary; a former Blackhawks star who copilots jetliners; an ex-Cub who became a jazz trumpeter; and more
(page 12 of 17)
by Jenna Marotta
ANDREA JAEGER
THEN Teen tennis phenom (early 1980s)
NOW Advocate for children in need
Andrea Jaeger burst from the suburban Chicago tennis scene onto the world circuit with the velocity of an overhead smash. Growing up in Lincolnshire, she turned pro at 14 and at 16 was ranked second among the world’s female players. But in truth Jaeger didn’t fit the mold of a tennis phenom. She agonized at the sight of the heartbroken opponents she had vanquished. She even admits that she “didn’t try” against Martina Navratilova in the 1983 Wimbledon finals because she knew victory mattered more to Navratilova. “My dad didn’t say a word to me afterward,” Jaeger recalls.
After an injury cut short her career when she was 18, she began to explore her deepening religious faith and desire to ease the suffering of seriously ill children. Soon she began giving away her $1.4 million in winnings to hospitals in Florida, and she sold her Mercedes to buy toys for children with cancer. “If God gave me this gift to play tennis, this money isn’t really mine to keep,” she recalls thinking.
In 1990, Jaeger cofounded the nonprofit Little Star Foundation to benefit young victims of illness, poverty, abuse, and natural disasters. Soon after that, she began studying religion, eventually earning a degree in theology and ministry training. In 2006, she joined the Episcopal Church’s Anglican Dominican order. “For me, becoming a nun was a natural step, one I was grateful to do,” she says. But running a charity and fulfilling her vows proved challenging. In the fall of 2009, when foundation duties prevented her from attending a quarterly convocation, Jaeger decided to leave the church. “My way to honor God was to be in the sisterhood, but then I realized God didn’t need that,” she says from her foundation’s Rancho Milagro (Miracle Ranch) in Durango, Colorado.
Today, Jaeger, 45, raises millions of dollars annually for children in need. Each year, Little Star hosts 25 retreats for sick children and their families, enabling them to enjoy adventures ranging from swimming with dolphins to attending shows on Broadway. “I didn’t need to be a professional tennis player to make a difference in the world,” she says. “And I didn’t need to be Sister Andrea Jaeger to help children and share God’s love.”
Photography: (Jaeger, then) Bob Fila/Chicago Tribune; (Jaeger, now) Jerry McBride/AP
This article appears in the April 2011 issue of Chicago magazine.
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You'd think this guy growing up in Gary, Indiana and playing for the White Sox and he appeared as being a small town guy who found suucess and that he would be a decent guy but from all the accounts I've heard this guy is a total a**hole! Jerk!!!
It's interesting that I came across this article, because it had recently crossed my mind as to what had become of some college athletes. In particular, Mark Aguirre, Teddy Grubbs and Terry Cummings from DePaul's NCAA glory days. Maybe you could do a follow-up story on these guys and other college and high school phenoms that did not complete a pro career, but were still a part of Chicago's sports history. As for this article, I am very impressed and pleased at the way you have taken several excellent role models for young athletes and shown them in a positive light. Please continue the good work.
What about Tom O'Hara, the first native of the U.S. state of Illinois to break the four-minute barrier for the mile run. He accomplished this feat in 1963 when he ran the mile in 3:59.4.
He also held the world record for fastest mile in indoor track, which was set when he ran the mile in 3:56.6 on February 13, 1964. He later beat that record on March 6 of the same year with a time of 3:56.4, a world record that stood for fourteen years.
THANE OF CAWDOR: you are a buffoon. An individual as uneducated (look at your grammar) and uninformed (White Sox?) should not be permitted to post comments to any blog. Carmen was a fan favorite and player's player because of his generosity and fiery competitiveness, among many other great qualities. It is obvious you have some personal ax to grind, and I doubt you you have ever held as much as a minimum wage job. Carmen was the ultimate in class as Cub, and he is certainly all of that as a human-being. Several friends of mine and I know this from personal experience.
@THANE OF CAWDOR...u must be talking about a different Steve Trout...the one I know who pitched for the Cubs/White Sox/Yankees and Seattle,is a classy gentleman and one of the nicest guys I have ever met. One I am proud to call a friend!