Sports that were a lifeline as his escape from physical abuse as a child are now too painful for longtime Denver sportscaster Todd Romero to watch.
“Sports saved my life as a kid. I had an abusive, alcoholic stepfather. From ages five through 15, I got beaten by him three or four times a week,” Romero told me, with tears turning his eyes into puddles as we sat in a local coffee shop. “What saved me was getting out of the house to play baseball, basketball and football. Those coaches mentored me, fed me and made me feel somebody cared.