Hearing the words of a baseball great is always a unique experience and hundreds of lucky attendees to an event in Pennsylvania's Lehigh Valley got that opportunity over Thanksgiving week. Steve Garvey made his way to the area to speak at the 21st annual Thanksgiving Benefit and Awards Luncheon. 

The banquet was put on by the Lehigh Valley Chapter of Pennslyvania Institute of Certified Public Accountants and LifePath. Prior to his speaking engagement, Garvey was able to visit LifePath, which is a facility that helps people with autism, intellectual and developmental disabilities. 

Garvey talked at length about that experience and also took the crowd back in time, sharing stories about when baseball was truly America's Pastime. He followed in a long line of baseball speakers at the event, with names like Mike Schmidt, John Kruk, Johnny Bench, Jim Palmer and Pete Rose having given presentations in previous years. 

Garvey was a standout first baseman for the Los Angeles Dodgers and San Diego Padres. A ten-time All-Star, he had the season of his career with the Dodgers in 1974, hitting .312 with 21 home runs and 111 RBI. 

Garvey was also a huge postseason performer, winning the National League Championship Series MVP in 1974 and 1978. He helped Los Angeles win the World Series in 1981. 

As a four-time Gold Glove Award winner, Garvey was noted for his defense. He was also an ironman on the field, playing in an NL record 1,207 consecutive games.