How that photo of Hank Aaron's widow went from personal snapshot to viral tearjerker

New York Times

2 days ago

For all the Big Dumper hoopla and swing-off madness, the most indelible image of MLB's All-Star Game came during a solemn moment of respect.
Billye Aaron, the 88-year-old widow of Henry 'Hank' Aaron, rose from her seat as a solitary figure during the sixth inning Tuesday night as the Atlanta Braves played a tribute to her legendary husband on the Truist Park video board.
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Amid this profound and smoke-tinged backdrop, a team consultant who works closely with Mrs. Aaron snapped a photo with his iPhone. Bryan Harris hit the shutter button intending to share his photo with his subject.
'I know how important Henry was to her and how much she misses him, so I wanted to capture that photo for her,' said Harris, who works as a communications advisor for sports teams and organizations. 'When the program ended and the lights came up, the crowd gave a standing ovation for Henry and Billye, it was hard to not get caught up in the emotion of it all.
'I showed her the picture, and she beamed. I asked her if she was OK with me sharing it with the team, and she said absolutely.'
The team, in turn, shared the photo on social media, and by Thursday afternoon, the image had been seen by 1.3 million people on its X and liked 51,000 times on its Instagram. Fans of the photo included a player who will join Aaron as a Cooperstown enshrinee when he is inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame later this month.
This was everything. https://t.co/q0hrd7mCYE
— CC Sabathia (@CC_Sabathia) July 16, 2025
The photo captured the grandeur of the brightly lit 715, which signified the home run that propelled Aaron past Babe Ruth for what was then the home run record, on April 18, 1974.
But the shot also conveyed an intimate bond between an accomplished husband and wife. Billye Aaron, the first African American woman in the Southeast to co-host a daily, regularly scheduled talk show, married Hank in 1973 and they remained together until the day he died on Jan. 22, 2021.
To find out more about the iPhone shot seen 'round the world, The Athletic reached out to Harris and asked how he got that shot.
This is the story behind the photo, in the photographer's own words.
When she's at games, Mrs. Aaron watches from the suite with Terry McGuirk, the Braves chairman. She always sits in the same corner seat, four rows up from the ledge overlooking the 100 level.
Whenever possible, I meet her underneath the ballpark and escort her to the suite. If she sees someone she knows on the trip up or in the suite, she asks me to take pictures and text them to her. For instance, when she arrived on Monday, we heard someone call her name outside the NL clubhouse, and it was Freddie Freeman. He came up and gave her a huge hug, introduced his family and asked for a picture.
Same with Ken Griffey Jr. in the suite. She loves keeping all these on her phone.
When we do things inside the ballpark to honor Henry, the crowd wants to see her. She used to come to the field for moments like that, but it really puts a burden on her. Instead, she now comes down to the ledge in the front of the suite so that our stadium and broadcast cameras can capture her clearly. It creates a wonderful moment because the fans below her start chanting her name and cheering.
The Braves' game experience team told me to let her know when the moment would take place Tuesday night (end of sixth inning) and gave her the option to walk down the steps, which she was glad to do.
I knew that the moment on the field would be spectacular. The Braves and MLB put so much time, planning and effort into creating something memorable for the people inside Truist Park and the global audience on television. That being said, I was struck by the fact that this spectacle was taking place in front of the world and Mrs. Aaron was standing there alone.
After the video started, I saw her standing there and wanted to capture that moment for her. It was completely spontaneous, and I took it on my iPhone. She didn't know it was happening.
When the moment was over, I came down and grabbed her hand and walked her back to her seat.
People in my role are meant to be in the background. I was in that spot because my clients (Braves and MLB) allowed me to come alongside them. My work gives me the good fortune to be behind-the-scenes for so many 'pinch me' moments, and I never want to take that for granted.
Every now and then, I will be at the right place and right time to capture something special, like the moment with Mrs. Aaron.
As for the reaction, honestly, only my family, Mrs. Aaron and the Braves knew that I took the picture, and that's perfectly fine with me. My kids tagged me in a few of the comments, which made me laugh. The fact that so many people have seen and been moved by the picture is awesome. I've enjoyed reading all the comments on social media as fans profess their love for Henry and Billye. That's where all the attention should be.
I've been honored to spend a lot of time with Mrs. Aaron the past couple years and she has been so gracious and welcoming to me. Many people don't know that she was a distinguished journalist who left her mark in Atlanta in so many ways. She's still a storyteller at heart and she and Henry made a powerhouse team.
I hope that the image of her that I captured, as well as the in-game celebration, will inspire people to learn more about Hank and his incredible legacy. If they really liked the picture, then I would encourage them to visit Braves.com/Hank and donate to the Henry Louis Aaron Fund, which supports those who are following in his footsteps on the field and in the front office.
(Top photo of Billye Aaron / Bryan Harris: Courtesy of the Atlanta Braves)