His last pro game was in Modesto, Calif., in 1956, and he eventually found his way back to Cedar Rapids, where he worked 23 years for an aerospace and defense firm and two years for the railroad before retiring in 1985.

He ran for sheriff and the town commission, “everything but dog catcher,” Pennington laughed, “and that’s probably the only office I could have been elected to.

“I didn’t care about losing. I was more interested in the chance to speak out against prejudice,” he said.

All the while, locals and out-of-towners knocked on his door to ask if he was THE Art Pennington, and often left with an autographed souvenir.

He kept many of his own. Pennington hit one of the longest home runs in the history of old Comiskey Park for the American Giants and had an old brick from the since-demolished ballpark, but that was swept away, too. So were hats, jerseys and baseballs used in games.

Pennington does have a scrapbook and a glove in the Negro League exhibit at the Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown. And three bats were recovered from the flood; two were given to him by Henry Aaron — one a “Remember me?” gift for the time in the mid-’50s when Pennington and Hammerin’ Hank tried to walk through the front gate of a spring training game in Florida together and were told they had to use the service entrance.

“The day they let us back into Art’s house was the worst,” Valencia recalled. “We’d start cleaning up and something would spark a memory and I couldn’t even imagine what he was thinking. I know it would kill me if I was good enough to play in the major leagues and never got the chance.”

Pennington is staying now with friends and neighbors. Valencia helped him file a claim with the Federal Emergency Management Agency and is seeking a grant from MLB’s Baseball Assistance Team, which helps aging ballplayers.

Valencia set up a MySpace page where Pennington sells autographed baseball cards that Valencia helped design and print. He also arranges speaking engagements and card-show appearances.

Last weekend, the pair traveled to Kansas City for the Royals’ annual tribute to surviving Negro League players and helped pass the hat seeking donations from current major leaguers.

Slide show   Week in Sports Pictures Flying on the hardwood, racing on the rink, getting physical on the gridiron, and much more. more photos

And as word of his plight rippled through the game, some current major leaguers, among them the Detroit Tigers’ Curtis Granderson, began exploring ways to get teammates and friends involved in raising money for Pennington.

But money will only replace material things, like the recliners and TVs where Pennington used to watch the Yankees or Cubs and laugh out loud at an error by some player making more than he ever dreamed about with half his skills.

“When you get up into your 80s, you forget a lot of things,” Pennington said, “and that’s my biggest regret.”

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