16-Inch Softball Inducts Its Stars into Hall of Fame
The 22nd Annual Hall of Fame Inductee Dinner will be held on Saturday April 7, 2018 at the Drury Lane Oakbrook. "Our annual event attracts approximately 550 guests each year. This is a great time for those of us who love the game to celebrate with friends and honor those who have been inducted, while keeping the game alive for those who will be playing after us," states Ron Kubicki, President of the Chicago 16-Inch Softball Hall of Fame.
Ticket Info:
Tickets for the Hall of Fame event by order-which includes a four-course dinner, four hours of open bar and free parking-are available in advance until April 1 for $130 for adults, and $90 for people under 21 years of age. Tickets are $150 and $110 at the door. Cocktail hour is from 5:30-7:00 p.m., dinner 7:00-7:45 p.m., and presentations beginning at 8:00 p.m.
INDUCTEE DINNER BOOK ADVERTISING
Ads for the annual Inductee Dinner Book are due each year on March 15th. Full page ads in the dinner book are $300. For more information, please call Rachell Entler at 708-366-7500 ext 17, via e-mail: rentler@pdofp.org. Or Click Here for pricing and sizes.
For registration form and information on the Inductee Dinner, Click Here
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2010 HOF Inductee Bob Russ, Sr. Passes
Bob passed Friday leaving an outstanding legacy as a player, coach and manager of great teams. But his biggest accomplishment may have been raising two of his sons Randy and Bobby Jr. to have the passion and drive for the sport that they too are recent Inductee additions to the HOF.
He started his softball career on the North side of Chicago at Hermosa, Mozart, and Blackhawk Parks with the Trolls and DE Rogues. He attended Lane Tech for two years and then transferred to Kelvyn Park. He was elected captain of the Kelvyn Park baseball team for the final two years and was selected to Chicago's All-City Baseball Team. He also played basketball and football at Kelvyn Park. Bob was drafted in the Army where he spent two years with the 4th Infantry Division. He returned form Vietnam with the rank of SPEC 5. He started playing serious softball when he joined the Olympics, a team playing at Kosciusko and Clarendon parks. He was then asked to play with the Lyons 45's, a powerhouse team in those days, featuring such great players as John Straley, Jim Fuller, Louie Zielinski, and Greg Burzynski, all Hall of Fame inductees. He also played with the Gaffers at Kosciusko. Bob was considered one of the toughest outs in softball. He did what all good hitters do - he got on base. He hit hard, spinning line drives at the feet of infielders, making them difficult to pick-up. He hit the gaps hard and when the outfielders came in to catch the dump hit, the ball would jump off to the side, allowing him to take an extra base with his good speed. He was a tough singles and doubles hitter with a lifetime batting average over .600. In the 1970s, he joined the Rogues. They played at Clarendon and Kelly parks in Chicago and James Park in Evanston. They beat the Bobcats in Evanston for the championship on a triple-play in the last inning when Lou Zielinsky made a great play in short center, flipped the ball to Bobby Russ who then threw to Vito Maggerise (HOF) to complete the triple play. The Rogues won championships throughout the city, including the Andy Frain Tournament and won multiple titles at Amundsen and Kosciusko parks. Bob was MVP two times in the '70s with the Rogues before moving to Otto's in the '80s.
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n the '80s Bob also played with the Pirates of Broadview and also with the Stooges. He finished his playing days with the Bally team and a work team in the suburbs. Bob went on to manage and coach some great teams in the '90s through the new millennium, including Primetime, Lettuce, Licorice, Sage, Maxim, Flash, and Jinx, five-time national champions.
Our condolences to his entire family.
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HOF Inductee Writes A Book
We are pleased to advise you that a new book about our game on the 1970's, 80's and 90's is being written by Chicago 16 Inch Softball Hall of Fame Media Inductee Tim Maher. The Hall of Fame board would like to offer team managers or players of that era to contribute to the content with a story about your team. And or a short story of a funny moment experienced.
Team stories, legends of our game, tournaments, and all kinds of classic pictures and memories will be included in the final document. Again, we welcome a 1 or 2 page story of 350-400 words and a photo on your team from those decades only by February 1st. There is NO cost to do this.
The book which is in a 5 1/2 X 8 1/2 format and expected to be printed by April 1st will be on sale at the annual Hall of Fame awards dinner at the Drury Lane in Oakbrook on April 7th.
If you would like to put in a story, need more details and/or support the book with
We expect this project to be another opportunity for the Hall of Fame to share more stories about one the most exciting times in the game's history. Here is your opportunity to be part of it. Please forward this to teammates and friends.
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Hall of Fame
Museum
Schedule
Open Saturday 12:00 to 4:00 Only
Call Rachell Entler at (708) 366-7500 x 17 for an appointment.
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Don't Miss Daily Old Photos on Facebook
Since September, the HOF Facebook page has been showing a different team every day - from the '30s to the contemporary era. In just that short time, we have had an average of 1,000 people view our highlighted teams, individuals, and HOF features and activities. On several occasions, we have even hit 5,000-7,000 views.
Check us out! We believe you will enjoy our page and may see folks you know - or even your own team.
1937 Davis Square Champions
From Scott Blake. Grandfather Stanley top row on left. Now this is a classic!
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The HOF is Looking for 16 inch Softball Memorabilia
A very nice patch was donated to the HOF. If you have any items that you would like us to consider for display please share by contacting Rachel Entler at Forest Park or drop off on a Saturday afternoon at the museum.
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Do you have a great story, photos, or ideas of league or team names you would like to share? Send them to Tiffany.Hoffman@Maagcommplus.com for a chance to be featured in our next newsletter.
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STAY CONNECTED
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