The Applied Invitational Says Goodbye to its All-Star, Vida Blue

It is with heavy hearts that we share that Vida Blue has passed away from his courageous battle with cancer.

There are few athletes that have given back more to the communities that supported them in their careers than our friend, Vida. More than that, he was a man who realized how truly capable each of us is to change lives for good. So, he made his life about giving back every single day. In his words, “Vida Blue, the ball player, couldn’t hold Vida Blue, the man’s, jockstrap!”

Vida is an honored member of The Invitational family. Even in a community where compassion is the standard, Vida Blue stands out. In fact, Vida was a stand-out in many of his undertakings in life, including as a Major Leaguer, where he and the Oakland A’s won three consecutive World Series championships from 1972-1974, and where he was an AL MVP and Cy Young Award winner.

For someone like Vida to turn his world-class abilities toward the profound purpose of service is something for which we are all deeply grateful. The world is brighter, life more vivid when more of us are like Vida Blue.

His legacy continues, as it inspires us to serve as he did—so enthusiastically that we might engender our dear friends to shout our names into the world as Jim Kelly did for Vida at our Finals this year:

“Vida, We Miss You! We Love You! Vida! Vida, Let’s Go!”

With admiration for Vida, and with our deepest sympathies to his family, friends and all those who loved him,

The Applied Invitational

If you’d like to learn more about Vida’s passion, Northern Light School, please visit northernlightschool.com