THE BEGINNING My love for softball started in the early 70’s by going from park to ark with my dad to watch my brother Tom “Eggs” Czarnik play this great game of sixteen-inch softball. I remember my first time watching him play at Clarendon Park and was intrigued by the number of people surrounding the […]
As a kid, Sal Milazzo remembers watching his dad, Nick Milazzo, play sixteen-inch softball at Saint Bonaventure Elementary School in Chicago. Sal had the opportunity to play softball in the intramural program at Northern Illinois University. After the championship game his senior year, he was asked to pitch for the Willoughby Elrod Raiders at
Charles Bidwill’s pioneering spirit, his continued enthusiasm for the game of professional football, and unyielding support place him as one of the guiding lights of the early years of the National Football League. His financial support enabled George Halas to retain ownership of the Chicago Bears in the early days of the Great Depression. He
In 1989, Virginia Rugai was diagnosed with breast cancer. In the following months, friends and neighbors provided an incredible network of support for Rugai and her family as she waged a difficult battle with this horrible disease. Like so many other survivors, Ginger had an ongoing desire to continue the fight beyond her personal
Alderwoman “Ginger” Rugai Read More »
Howie Fagan has had a tremendous impact on the Hall of Fame from its inception. In fact, one could argue that it was his generosity that led to the first public display of softball memorabilia. Italian Sports Hall of Fame director, George Randazzo, suggested that Howie and Al Maag meet. From that first meeting, Howie
Cecil and Diane Roderick own Buck’s Pit Stop and M&R Wrecking. Besides being long-term owners of these businesses, they are also long-term supporters of sixteen-inch softball through their sponsorship of hundreds of teams over a twenty-year period. These sponsorships have included police and fire teams, recreational and industrial teams, girls and women’s team, “A” league
John Garvin, a life-long sports enthusiast, graduated from St. Ignatius High School in 1948. In 1968 he opened Garv-Inn, a small neighborhood tavern in Berwyn. Even though it measured only a thousand feet in space, it was a huge presence in the softball community because of the teams John sponsored. Since its creation in 1968,
A native of Chicago, Terry O’Brien grew up playing softball for many teams, including the Scorpions and Muskrats from 1972 to 1988 in leagues and tournaments at parks throughout Chicago and the suburbs, including Clarendon, Wells, Mather, and Pottawatomie in Chicago, James in Evanston, Majewski in Mt. Prospect and at Forest Park. As president of
When Jim Taylor, Len Smith and Terry Bell formed Hometown Distributing in 1983, they immediately threw their support behind 16″ softball on the South Side of Chicago, supporting many teams at Washington, Kelly, Grant, and Forest Parks. In the mid 1980s, the Touch and Jim realized their dream when Touch won the National Championship in
Unlike a lot of bar sponsors, Joe Rizza never sponsored a team expecting them to “pay him back” after the game. This attitude certainly produced a lot of happy wives whose husbands didn�t feel an obligation to stay out late after the game. All Joe Rizza asked was that a player or fan who was
