Astros: Help support Jim Lefebvre, finalist for FanSided Fan of the Year

What qualifies someone to be FanSided Sports Fan of the Year? A person who exemplifies dedication, integrity and “Fansmanship” all for the love of the game.

Back on Oct. 2, we posted an article announcing the 2019 FanSided Sports Fan of the Year Contest. Our readers responded with their 200-word essays and two-minute videos nominating who they think is the ultimate fan of the Astros.

Well, the deadline to get in your entries has passed and I’m proud to announce that one of our own fans of the Houston Astros has been named as one of the five finalists. Astros fanatic, Jim Lefebvre, will be competing with fans Lauren Gooden (Philadelphia 76ers), Cameron Black (KC Chiefs), Jon Markwardt (Minn. Vikings), and Mark Holmes (Dallas Cowboys).

Each finalist will receive a feature on FanSided.com, a $100 gift card to Fanatics, a $100 gift certificate to the FanSided Swag Shop and a one-year subscription to Fubu.TV. A grand-prize winner will be selected on Nov. 13, receiving a $2,500 gift certificate to StubHub to make sure they can be there in person to cheer on their favorite team’s biggest moments.

Jim Lefebvre recalls seeing the team play for the first time in 1965 when his father took him to a game at the Houston Astrodome.

“It was the year they opened,” he told FanSided. “It was a standing room only crowd. We stood the whole time and we watched Sandy Koufax strike out the Astros three to nothing. And I was hooked, that was it for me.”

Despite a very long dry spell for the team, his fandom never wavered. He, alongside his wheelchair-bound wife, remained steadfast in their attendance, even when commuting to the games became difficult for Lefebvre, a wounded veteran, and his disabled partner.

You can read more about Jim Lefebvre along with the other four finalists here. I hope you join us in supporting Jim and casting your vote to help one of the Astros’ most avid fans become the FanSided Sports Fan of the Year.