WECSSO

WINDSOR ESSEX COUNTY SENIOR SPORTS ORGANIZATION

SUMMER EDITION Volume 28 NOVEMBER 2016

SLO-PITCH REPORT

BECAUSE WE CAN

Over the winter months, when the slo-pitch committee meets to prepare for the upcoming season, I

research various senior slo-pitch leagues to see what rules that they have incorporated into their

leagues. If I feel that a particular rule would be of benefit to the players in our league, I bring it

forward to the slo-pitch committee for discussion. One league that I was researching was a senior

league comprised of players over the age of eighty. Many times the players were asked “why are they

playing slo-pitch at such an advanced age.” Their answer: BECAUSE WE CAN!!!!

Their answer got me to thinking. Do players in our league or any senior league for that matter; realize

how fortunate they are to still be playing slo-pitch at our advanced ages. A senior’s lifestyle of today is

a far cry from the lifestyle of our parents and grandparents. Playing ball at our age would have been

unthinkable. Again I ask the question: do we realize how lucky we are to be physically active and to be

able not only to play slo-pitch but a number of sports. However this could end in an instant. We can

go from being physically active to being a spectator very quickly. What we enjoy doing now, we may

not be able to do in the future due to injury or sickness. We do not realize how good we have it until

it is too late. That is why we should ENJOY THE MOMENT.

Enjoy playing this wonderful game amongst players that you got to know over the years and whose

friendship and camaraderie you look forward to each and every game. Enjoy playing a competitive

game but also do not forget to have fun along the way. Enjoy staying after the game to socialize with

your fellow players-who cares if they just beat you- you are amongst friends who just like to “chew the

fat” or “shoot the bull” after the game. Think of it as a sort of our seniors “social hour”. Enjoy the

good times on the field-key hit or a nice fielding play and do not fret about the bad times- making an

error or making out at a crucial time . Who cares? Enjoy the fact that you had a chance to hit or to

field a ball-some cannot do this anymore-they would love a chance to make an error or to get a key

hit-this would mean that they are still able to play.

Enjoy each and every game-do not take it so seriously.-do not take yourself so seriously. So what if

you did not hit well or play well - the point is you are playing and having fun playing a game you love-

amongst friends. What more can you ask for????

In closing, hopefully you are able to play this wonderful game for many years and when asked why

you are still playing at your advanced age-you can respond: BECAUSE I CAN.

Ron Ottogalli

We had another successful year in in 2016 with just over 200 ballplayers. Our objective is to stay

healthy, have a lot of fun and play a lot of ball; and play a lot of ball, - we did. This year we had the least

amount of rain-outs over the past few years. The Blue Division had a few, but I believe the Red and

Green divisions did not miss a single game due to a rain-out. The WECSSO and Slo-Pitch Executives

deserve our thanks for the many hours of preparation and all the work they do in organizing our league

from year to year.

Our team pictures are on our website, thanks to Jim Bridge and Phil Ochs. Also special thanks to Carla

Hicks, our webmaster. In past years we have given the winning team members a team picture as part of

their award. Those members who would like a team picture can now simply download the team picture

from the website and add it to their picture folder/file. If you don't have access to a computer, let me

know and we will get a picture for you.

Our season, as always, concluded with the WECSSO/Slo-Pitch Annual Banquet. We had a very good

turnout and an enjoyable evening was had by all. Thanks to all the members who were able to donate a

door prize for the evening. Special thanks to Neil McKnight, our Social Director who has always done an

awesome job in organizing our mid-season appreciation luncheon and the final banquet. Neil is stepping

down from this position and from the Slo-Pitch executive. He will continue to play ball, and will be

travelling a lot more to see his kids and grandchildren out west. Thanks Neil for your service.

We had a beautiful day for our 20th Annual Memorial Day of Remembrance on August 20th. Bob Parent

and his committee presented an excellent program to honour 5 members that had passed away in the

past year. A memorial brick is laid for each member in our own special area which is right by the Udine

Fountain at the foot of Ouellette Ave. and Riverside Drive.

Since that service we have had one more member pass away, Frank Edwards. Frank was one of our

original founders and first served as Vice President under Tommy Simpson with the “Windsor Retirees”,

a precursor to our WECSSO League, in 1990. They played in the CAN-AM League. Frank pushed the idea

of developing a league to play solely in Windsor and WECSSO was formed in 1993 with Frank as the 1st

President under this new name. Frank played ball up to a few years ago when his health prevented him

from doing so. At his funeral visitation service, John Barron spoke highly of Frank, his friendship to many

and of his service to our league. Frank will be honoured in the service next year.

Each year, members receive a team partnership card from National Sports. We receive 5% of all

purchases back to our league. This year our members purchased $2000 in sports equipment from

National Sports and we received $100 back to our league. This $100 was given out as 5 door prizes of

$20 each to our members attending our AGM on October 18th.

The AGM was poorly attended this year. There were 27 in attendance in addition to the 10 executive

members present. I thank those who were able to attend, but where were the other 160+ members.

The members attending took interest in the meeting, were involved in discussion and voted on a

President Brian’s Corner

proposed bylaw. It is the lack of interest, the indifference of the majority our members who did not

attend, that the executive finds very disconcerting. Both executives put in a lot of time coordinating this

league and if they are going to volunteer to do that they would appreciate having feedback and ideas

(from more than just 27) on what we did this year and how we can improve for the following year.

Please consider attending next year.

New By-Law presented in a motion: Any member, being an active member for a minimum of 15 years,

and having retired from playing ball, will be honoured with a life membership with full voting privileges.

(Members fees - $20 waived, but still required to cover costs of banquets.) Moved by John Barron and

seconded by Dan Leithead . Carried as of Oct 18, 2016 forward.

It was felt that if you have played ball for 15 years and retire, you would become a life member, could

attend the banquets, vote at meetings and be honoured with a memorial brick on your passing.

The cost to play summer ball this year will be $75.00. Of that $75, $30 is directed to the Slo-Pitch

Executive to cover the cost of the insurance, our appreciation luncheon and the annual banquet. The

remaining $45.00 will be directed to the WECSSO Executive to cover the other major cost of running the

league such as diamond rental, equipment, jerseys, medical supplies and awards for winning teams. The

fee was raised as we have had a deficit (avg. $6500) the past 5 out of 6 years. We are hoping to move

towards a balanced budget this coming year.

Five members of the WECSSO executive were up for re-election this year: Tom Bois, Ken Dafoe, Bill

Magone, Hector Marinacci and Mike Patterson. All were acclaimed to their position and will serve for

the next 2 years. Along with them you have Jim Bridge, Jack Bump, Don Diubaldo, Phil Ochs, Bob Parent

and myself.

The Slo-Pitch Executive election also took place with Jack Bump and Gary Galli being added as new

members. They will serve along with Rick Anderson, Don Balkwill, Chris Brennan, Dan Leithead, Bill

Magone, Hector Marinacci, Ron Ottogalli, Bill Scheuerman, Jack Westlake, Bob Parent and myself.

Don't forget the Goodfellows Paper Drive. Ken Dafoe organizes this event every year for us. Last year

Ken's group raised $19,500 over the 3 day event. Look for more info on this in this newsletter. Managers

will be contacting you to see if you are able to help out with this very worthwhile event. Please consider

volunteering. It will add joy to your day.

He who has compassion on the poor lends to the Lord, and he will repay him for his good deed.

Proverbs 19: 17

WE ARE SAD TO REPORT THAT LONG STANDING MEMBER RAY HICKS HAS PASSED AWAY ON

NOV 20TH. The service has been conducted.

Ray will be remembered by many friends and family, as well as during our Remembrance

Ceremony next August.

Please keep Carla Hicks and her family in your prayers

Bingo Committee Report

Our member volunteers are doing a fine job at the bingo sessions. At our latest date, October

26th, we had Linda (Bob) Teron, Rosemary (Norman) Kennette and Ron Ottogalli working with

Jim. The day went very well. We have now had 12 of the 16 members who initially volunteered,

work at least one bingo.

We are changing the policy regarding bingo honorariums. Instead of members receiving a $10

credit for each session worked, towards their membership and baseball fees for the next year,

we will now be giving a $20 cash honorarium for each session worked. It was felt that a cash

payout was best, as keeping track of members credits involved too much accounting with our

Registrar and both Treasurer's of WECSSO and the Slo-Pitch Executives. We increased the

honorarium to $20 with the hope of getting more members to help us out. It is also the

standard by which most charities give as an honorarium. We are hoping to train more members

on cash and then be able to rotate members through the cash payout and book-selling

positions.

Below are the bingo assignments up until the end of June, 2017 (each date has 3 two hour

sessions)

Friday, December 16th - 4, 6 & 8 pm Saturday, April 8th - 4, 6 & 8pm

Friday, January 13th - 4, 6 & 8 pm Monday, May 1st – 10, 12 & 2 pm

Monday, February 20th: - 10, 12 & 2 pm Wednesday, June 7th, - 10 12 & 2 pm.

For December 16th, at present, I only have Rosemary Kennette. If you are able to work this

bingo or any of the other dates, let me know.

Bingo Committee: Jim Bridge 519-969-9029 jgb0543@sympatico.ca

Brian Adlam 519-735-5438 b_ adlam@hotmail.com

Softball Slo-Pitch 2016

Thank you for the privilege of playing softball again this year. It was great! Formerly I was a once a week

player in the evenings at Mic-Mac. Not fully retired it was doubtful that two mornings a week would

work. However I found myself looking forward to each game day and thankful on a rainout that we had

two shots per week. Business will just have to wait as Softball became the priority.

There seems to be some disparity as to which league senior men play. When outside friends ask about

the league here is one summation. The Red league is for the men in their 50’s, the Blue league is for 60’s

and the Green league is for the 70 and above age group. There are older men that are skilled enough to

play in the younger leagues and there are younger men not physically able to compete or perhaps not

skilled enough to play with their age group.

The reality seems to be that other factors are at play. Relatives and friends want to play on the same

team regardless of age or skill. Pride is probably more of a factor with us old guys wanting to think or

have a self-image that we are still young studs. Perhaps the most influencing factor in playing out of

one’s age group is the conflict of schedules. Golf leagues, Service Clubs, work schedules and other

weekly activities to which we commit play a big part in what league is played. So far Monday &

Wednesday are for the best and youngest or the oldest and least skilled ball players. If Monday or

Wednesday conflicts with one’s schedule then the only game in this organization is Tuesday & Thursday.

The system works for me so God bless it and count me in. However there are players in “A” That belong

in “B” or “C”. Players in “B” that belong in “A” or “C” and a few players in “C” That belong in “A” or “B”

as far as skill levels goes. This may not work for everyone but where possible ball players should seek

their skill and age level. Sooner or later I am headed for the Green teams and I intend to enjoy that 70+

age group and accept it with grace. (My legs are killing me.) Just hope the alternative league levels

survive these changing times. See you in the spring of 2017. Tom Goebel

==============

As you have noted already, our baseball fees have gone up to $75.00. This trend will continue as we see

less income coming from bingos than we used to have a few years ago. I realize that not everyone is able

to help but, those who can, should also try to volunteer at bingos. The person to contact would be Brian

Adlam. Our Windsor Best Seller books add a little income but this could be much better. As it is, we are

bringing in about $1300 to $1500 in profit per year. With just a little bit of effort from each ball-playing

member, we could do much better than this. If each player were to buy or sell 1 book, we could pay the

entrance fee for 62 members. If each member were to buy or sell 2 books, we could raise $9200 in

profit. For those who are not sure of what to buy as a Christmas present for those who have everything,

this would be a nice idea so that people could try some of the restaurant life in Windsor and then

partake of golf in the spring and summer. These books cost only $40.00. Use them 2 to 4 times and you

have made your money back. Thus, the book has cost nothing. We sure would appreciate the help of all

the ball players in this effort. There are now 3 areas where you could pick up the books: Marilyn Portt,

Brian Adlam, and Phil Ochs. At the present time, you can still get the old book free when you buy a new

one. The old book is still good until March 1 of 2017. Please see the WECSSO website for any further

details. ---- Phil Ochs

William (Bill) Scheuerman = BIO One of the fascinating outcomes of doing member bios is realizing that although you have known the person in WECSSO for years or, in this case, play cards regularly with them, you really know very little about their life and the many diverse experiences they’ve had. So it is with Bill Scheuerman. Bill was born and raised in Windsor. He attended Prince Edward, Patterson and the University of Windsor. He holds a B.A. in History and an M.A, in Psychology. He became an elementary school teacher and was assigned to the school he attended as a student, Prince Edward. He moved on to Brock, then went to Massey and Herman High schools, becoming the Head of Guidance. Interestingly, he taught our president Brian Adlam. Lest you think that this academic does not know “the real world”, Bill drove a truck for Webster Ford and Murphy Tobacco. He volunteered for 3 years in the City Jail and trained in the Canadian Army (Supplementary Reserve) reaching the rank of Captain and receiving a CD Designation. You may have seen the photo of Bill and Marilyn, his wife, in the Windsor Star recently which noted that they have been married 60 years, have 3 children, 4 grandchildren and 8 great grandchildren. Wow! Bill is active in his church Parkwood Gospel having served as a Deacon for 11 years. He currently is a member of the finance committee. He was on the board of Directors of the Teachers’ Credit Union for 11 years and is currently a member of Probus, a service club. At the beginning of the Drug Phenomena, in the early 1960`s; Bill worked with Father Ken Jaggs in establishing several drop in centers in Western Windsor as well as the Teen Health Center in downtown Windsor. Bill has seen quite a bit of this world. He has travelled to Europe, Great Britain, Israel and China. Many of us know Bill from volleyball and as the man who organizes and assigns our Slo-Pitch umpires. Clearly, the man, at 81, has not slowed down. by Don Diubaldo

RED DIVISION

The red division was very competitive this past season. There really was no number one team in the

division. The teams were very balanced and were capable of beating each other at any given time. The

outcome of each game between teams varied during the season. One team would beat a team by 10

runs and the next time the teams met, the score was exactly the opposite. This continued between

teams throughout the season and even into the playoffs. In the playoffs, Team Dimaio went undefeated

(6-0) but four of the games were decided by one run. This was truly a very competitive division and

hopefully next season the teams will be well balanced as this past season. A well balanced division

makes it very enjoyable for the players knowing that they have a chance to win every game that is

played. By the way, the division used a blind draft to make up the teams and this is probably the main

reason for the teams being balanced and the games very competitive. ------- Ron Ottogali

RED DIVISION PLAYOFFS

The red division playoff structure was a double round robin. After the round robin, the semi final games

were determined on the won-loss record of the teams in the round robin. Teams 1-2 and 3-4 played

each other. The loser 3vs4 was out and the winner continued in the playoff round. The winner of 1vs2

advanced to the final game. The loser of 1vs2 played the winner of 3vs4. The winner of this game

advanced to the final to play the winner of 1vs2. In the Red Division Team Dimaio defeated Team

Ottogalli to automatically advance to the finals. Team Bump defeated Team Decaire. Team Ottogalli by

finishing second in the round robin got a second chance to advance to the finals. However team

Ottogalli lost to Team Bump and was eliminated from further playoff action. Team Bump continued in

the playoffs to meet the number one team Team Dimaio.

The final game between Team Dimaio and Team Bump was very competitive and exciting to watch.

Team Dimaio came charging out of the gate and scored five runs in their half of the inning. It did not

look good for the Bump crew at this point. However, Team Bump battled back to get back into the

game. If it was not for a few running blunders by Team Bump the result of the game might have been

different. In the end, team Dimaio came up on top by a 12-9 score. Team Dimaio earned the victory

with timely hitting and strong defensive play. They were the better team on that day. The win enabled

them to go undefeated in both the round robin and the playoffs. On a side note, this was manager Mike

Dimaio’s third championship in a row. Another interesting fact, since Mike is in Florida at the time

teams are made up, he has not participated in the annual draft. The players were selected for him for

these past three seasons.

Here are the names and phone numbers of contact people for each of our activities:

WECSSO: Brian Adlam – 735- 5438

WRSA: Gerry Mayea - 519-739-2283

WECSSO NEWSLETTER: Tom Bois - 519-735-3922 email - thomasb@mnsi.net

SLO-PITCH: Rick Anderson – 519-734-0173

VOLLEYBALL MEN: John Barron - 519-735-5236

VOLLEYBALL WOMEN: Carol Malewicz 519- 990 - 8709

BEST SELLER BOOKS – Phil Ochs 519-726-6974

WEBSITE –www.wecsso.com / Carla Hicks – info@wecsso.com

Member Discount List : Bring your membership card.

Restaurants:

The Whistling Kettle - 11700 County Rd. 42 - 10%

Sports Equipment:

Nantais Source For Sports - 2020 Tecumseh Rd. W. (no GST/PST)

Bob Reaume Sports - 4275 Tecumseh Rd. E. (no GST/PST)

The Trophy Boys - 1540 McDougall (20%)

Wishing all of our members and their

families a very Merry Christmas and

Happy and Prosperous New Year

On behalf of Ken Dafoe and WECSSO

Thank you for all of you who participated in the GOODFELLOW’S PAPER DRIVE

this year.

BE A DONOR

Organ and Blood Donations

The CANADIAN BLOOD SERVICES CENTER is open Tuesday through Saturday at various times. Their

slogan is, “it is in you to Give” and it is very easy to give and much more is needed.

See their scheduled hours on the next page and to book an appointment – call 1-888-2-donate

Spread the Word - We need Donors

Windsor-Essex Gift of Life Association: Give the Gift of Life

Organization | Windsor

Clicks to Register: 1000 and counting

Windsor-Essex Gift of Life Association is committed to increasing the number of registered organ and tissue

donors through awareness, education, media outreach and transplant community support. Every three days

someone dies in Ontario because the life-saving organ transplant they need is not available, yet only 25% of

Ontarians have registered their consent to be a donor. There are 1,500 people in our province waiting for organ

transplants and the thousands more waiting for tissue transplants. Most people would accept an organ

transplant if they needed one, so why have so few registered their consent to donate? Our organization is

committed to changing these statistics and increasing education. We're asking our community to register their

consent for organ and tissue donation – it can be done online in just two minutes. We're also asking them to

ask their friends and family to register as well.

Help Windsor-Essex Gift of Life Association: Give the Gift of

Life reach their goal.

Statistics today are 1528 Canadians are waiting for a life saving organ transplant. 1095 for

kidneys, 224 for livers, these are the two organs that can be living donors if you are a match. In

Windsor Essex County health card holders registered is only 27% let's increase our numbers talk to your

family and register your consent beadonor.ca/wegiftoflife.

For a more in depth view of the need for donors please visit the following site

for a very real impact on the lives of those in need of a donor and those who

were the donor/ families:

http://www.cbc.ca/natureofthings/episodes/vital-bonds

Niva Segatto Tom Bois

"One organ donor can save up to eight lives, and can enhance the lives of up to 75 others"

Be a hero and consent to organ and tissue donation beadonor.ca/wegiftoflife