It seems as though the city’s decision-makers are having a difficult time deciding what to do about deciding what to do at Warner Park.

They have the intent of honoring people, past and present, that have made key contributions to the game of softball locally. To begin with the city is overseeing a ceremony at the rebuilt complex Friday from 4-6 p.m.

To use a softball analogy, that will get the ball rolling. However, city officials want something ongoing. They want to commemorate, memorialize — whatever the case may be — those they feel are deserving of lasting recognition at Chattanooga’s grand old softball park.

Local benefactor Jim Frost has the stadium inside the park named in his honor. The city is expected this weekend to dedicate the new concessions building to the memory of umpire and scorekeeper assigner Wilburn “Snooks” Nerren, who died in 2005. But, the four fields built around Hargraves during the redesigning of the park in the last year currently have no name.

We’re here to accommodate.

After having a stellar slowpitch career come to an end thanks to gravity taking effect during the late 1980s, this reporter began tagging along with then-Chattanooga Times softball writer Larry Bowers around the fields at Warner and Montague Parks, looking for ways to contribute to the next day’s newspaper.

Not long afterward, Bowers accepted a job with a newspaper in Key West, Fla. He eventually made his way back to East Tennessee, serving as managing editor of the Cleveland Daily Banner for a few years, but the duty of reporting on local softball at that point was suddenly mine.

We’ve witnessed and documented numerous people’s noteworthy contributions from all facets of softball in the last 20-or-so years. If four honorees is the parameter to work within, consider these.

Buck Johnson — Mr. Johnson to me — held the title of executive sports editor at the Times when my career in this business began on July 5, 1988. Listing all the accolades he has received over the years, not the least of which occurred in 1994 when he became the first media member inducted into the Amateur Softball Association Hall of Fame, would likely take up the rest of this space.

To again use a softball comparison, Mr. Johnson was a power-hitter as a writer. He routinely hit columns out of the park. Maybe this one can be legged out for an infield hit.

High school softball in this area is synonymous with the name Clifford Kirk. Guiding eight Class AAA state-championships teams, two at Hixson before moving on to Soddy-Daisy, will cause that sort of thing.

Softball is listed slightly ahead of life on Kirk’s priority list. Doctors had recommended that Kirk have surgery on his enlarged aorta in the spring, so he promptly had the procedure done — in summer. He waited until after his youthful Lady Trojans had their season finally end at the state tournament.

He used to go directly from high school ball to coaching a summer travel team, but he gave that up a few years ago. His job as a teacher is another thing he retired from, but don’t expect a little thing like major heart surgery to keep him out of Soddy-Daisy’s third-base coach’s box anytime soon.

Umpiring was made for the late Wayne Hickey Sr. He was at the downtown ballfields so much over the years, he probably had his mail delivered to one of them.

No doubt Hickey had his share of assignments working home plate as talent-rich teenage teams competed for a championship, but he considered calling the bases in a 10-under game a plum assignment, too. He preferred cutting up with fans seated in their lawn chairs around the backstop rather than tossing them out of the game, but an ump’s got to do what an ump’s got to do.

Dwayne Hale has done everything within the game of softball on the local level from being an ASA Commissioner to preparing and serving tasty treats. Last we checked he was operating the concession stand at the Tyner Recreation complex, so this mention ought to be good for a free hot dog next trip out there.

In an effort to keep irate feedback to a minimum, the city is considering not naming the new fields but rather numbering them, leaving the honoring of people to be done via inscriptions on a wall or monument.

Perhaps the aforementioned four could have their likenesses carved in stone, a shrine comparable to a mini Mount Rushmore. That would look good inside the Kelley Smiddie Park. Oops. The city may have wanted to release that news Friday.

Comments