Grand Rapids Negroe Baseball Team Owner Celebrates 90th Birthday
Minnie Forbes recently celebrated her 90th Birthday with a celebration held at the Hilton Garden Inn East on May 21, 2022. The event was put together by Miss Forbes and her grand children. The guest list included mostly family who flew in from as far away as New Jersey, Florida and Texas.
Grand Rapids native Minnie Forbes, 88, was owner of the Detroit Stars for two years from 1956-1958, according to WXMI-TV.
"I'm very grateful to have been a part of the history of the Negro League team, not only Black history but American history," Forbes said. "It gave me a sense of pride, just to know that I've known those great players back in that time."
Founded in 1920, the Negro Leagues began as a way to give African American players a chance to play professional baseball during segregation. Forbes joined the Negro Leagues in her mid-20s when her uncle Ted Raspberry purchased two teams, the Detroit Stars and the Kansas City Monarchs.
"At that time, there were only four teams in the league, and he owned two of them, so according to the rules he couldn't own two teams, so that's how I ended up with the Detroit Stars," Forbes recalled.
Although there had been other female owners before her, Forbes said she was the only one during her two years on the league.
She decided to leave the team in 1958 to pursue a career in retail but continues to keep in touch with many former Detroit Stars players.
In 2013, she was invited to the White House along with other members of the Negro Leagues to be honored by then-President Barack Obama. Forbes says she is proud to be a part of American baseball history.
These days Miss Forbes spends a lot of time with her best friend and dog Sasha. She attends occasional Eastern Star meetings because she is a past Grand Matron. She also still loves to go to church when she is feeling up to it but she also watches church online on her tablet and spends a lot of time with her family.
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