Bruce Hellerstein still walks the quiet corridors of the National Ballpark Museum on Blake Street, his eyes lingering on a modest yet meticulously curated space that bears the name of a long‑gone ballpark.
A Room Steeped in History
Inside, the Ebbets Field honorarium room glows with artifacts that whisper of a shared life between Hellerstein and his late wife, Judy Frieman. A crossed‑bats light fixture hangs above a display that includes a baseball globe salvaged from the rotunda of Brooklyn’s historic stadium.
The couple’s love of the game began on the Jewish dating site Jdate, where they met and soon married, embarking on a journey that would take them to roughly thirty ballparks across the country, including three World Series venues and a handful of independent‑league fields.
Judy’s enthusiasm was not merely personal; she helped run the museum, contributed financially, and infused the exhibits with a fervor that attracted collectors and fans alike.
A Museum Thriving Amid Grief
Today the museum enjoys a surge of interest, with roughly two thousand visitors expected this year, each drawn to the stories of baseball’s golden eras and the personal tributes that give the displays emotional weight.
For Hellerstein, the honorarium room is more than a memorial; it is a place where the echo of Judy’s laughter seems to linger among the memorabilia, offering him a quiet companionship that bridges past and present.
The museum’s location on Blake Street, opened in 2010, sits near the former site of Denver’s original ballparks, and its collection includes items from the early days of the sport up to the modern era, reflecting a timeline that mirrors the couple’s own pilgrimage.
From Jdate to the Ballpark
Their first meeting on Jdate sparked a partnership that blended cultural heritage with a shared love of baseball, a connection that later found expression in the museum’s design, where a plaque even nods to the early 1990s work Hellerstein contributed to Coors Field’s design committee.
The tribute room also showcases a baseball globe from Ebbets Field’s rotunda, a piece that once guided fans through the stadium’s concourse, now serving as a symbolic compass for visitors navigating the museum’s narrative of American pastime.
As the museum prepares for another busy season, Hellerstein finds solace in the knowledge that Judy’s passion continues to inspire both the exhibits and the countless fans who pause to remember the game’s legends, from Jackie Robinson’s breakthrough to Vin Scully’s iconic voice.