Rollins: "Springfield Batman" goes above and beyond call of duty

My keys, as part of a cellphone and wallet trifecta, remain closely guarded items.

I do not leave them lying about or give them willingly to strange or unknown characters.

So imagine my discomfort upon learning that a man — who dresses up as Batman — would soon be handed the key to the city of Springfield.

Certainly, this key is a symbolic gesture but a gesture that nonetheless implies a level of trust I'd be obliged not to bestow upon an unfamiliar, costumed and middle-aged man.

I set out to learn more, believing I would ultimately need to educate myself about schizophrenia or other such mental disorders.

Using tools long established in our newsroom for reaching sources by phone, I found a number for Derek Smith, the name of the alleged cape crusader known as Springfield Batman.

A few rings later, a male voice answered.

"I'm trying to reach Derek Smith," I said.

The voice replied: "This is he."

It didn't occur to me until this moment that Derek Smith is a somewhat common name.

I forged ahead.

"Is this Springfield Batman?"

A long pause initiated. I thought I might suffer an immediate hang-up, as the faux superhero attempted to hide his true identity. Or perhaps he was getting into character and would reply in a deep, gravelly voice.

Finally — after a longer than simply uncomfortable pause — he replied: "No."

This was not the Derek Smith I was looking for. I bid him good day and left him with a peculiar story to soon report to friends and loved ones.

It wasn't until later that evening that the Derek Smith who does answer to "Springfield Batman" returned an interview request.

Smith is a 35-year-old property manager. He has a French Bulldog named Bruce Wayne and, as you might imagine, is a devout fan of Batman. Smith is such a Batman fanatic that he has purchased, or created, several detailed costumes that he often wears or displays — Halloween or otherwise.

Also unsurprising: Smith is single.

His notoriety as the Queen City's own Batman began roughly in May 2013. That's when he went to Mercy Hospital and explained to human resource officials there that he had a "really cool" Batman suit and that, perhaps, sick kids might get a kick out of him wearing it.

"When I first went in there, they weren't too sure of it," Smith said of the hospital staff.

I should say so. Then, he answered my next question.

"I've been through a few background checks."

After first approaching Mercy — with all the necessary permissions — Smith returned to the hospital as (nahna, nahna, nahna, nahna) Batman.

That first time, "obviously, I was nervous walking through a hospital in a Batsuit."

Hospital staff took Smith to a wing where kids suffer from painful injury and sickening illness. The kids noticed the guy in the cape right away.

"Once they saw me, they forgot why they were there," he said.

Parents would lean in and note to Smith that children were smiling.

"They haven't smiled all day," they'd say.

After a few more trips to area hospitals, Smith wondered: "Why did I wait so long to do this?"

When asked, some kids remember more vividly the moment of meeting Batman than the days of an unpleasant hospital stay.

"I don't want them to remember the pain of the hospital," Smith told me.

He knows what that's like. Smith revealed to me that, as a kid, he spent some time in the hospital — a bad four-wheeler wreck put him in for a stint. He's also lived with other long-term ailments that remain unresolved. Smith is deaf in one ear.

He also suffers migraines a few times each week. With equal regularity, Smith visits local hospitals. Over the last year, he has gained admiration as Springfield Batman.

He might not be saving Gotham from injustice but it appears he's saving some Springfield kids from as much discomfort as anyone could.

I guess that's why Councilman Jeff Seifried is giving Smith the key to the city Friday at 6 p.m. at Park Central Square. Seifried and Smith also say the ceremony is an homage to area law enforcement, health workers and first responders — "the real heroes."

Just before I got off the phone with Smith, I asked him: "Of all the superheroes, why Batman?"

Smith explained: "Batman doesn't have any super powers."

He's just an ordinary guy who chooses to do good.

These are the views of Jess Rollins, the News-Leader's metro columnist. Rollins, a lifelong resident of the Ozarks, has covered cops, courts, city government and other topics for the News-Leader over the last four years. He can be reached at 836-1222, jrollins@news-leader.com, on Twitter @JessRollinsNL or by mail at 651 Boonville, Springfield MO 65806.