I’m not sure exactly where to begin so perhaps it’s best to just jump right into it.
On Sunday, the second meeting for the Wirt County Sports Hall of Fame was held in Elizabeth at Mingo Bottom Golf Club.
Joey Vincent, a 1993 Tiger graduate who happens to be exactly two days older than myself, has spearheaded this long overdue idea.
Now that the ball is slowly starting to roll, I figured it would be a good time to let the public know about this endeavor.
Starting literally from the basement floor and with a current sum of zero dollars to work with, the good news is the only place to go is up.
The 10-member committee, which I’m more than pleased to have been asked to be part of, definitely is going to have its share of challenges to get this up and running.
“We have so many deserving athletes and administrators that need to be honored by our local folks in addition to the Mid-Ohio Valley Sports Hall of Fame,” Vincent said. “I think guys like Bob Snider, Ray Watson, even down to Mike Sheppard, are guys that have done considerable amounts of good for this Mid-Ohio Valley.
“They’ve been so good at so many different levels, just not high school athletics. Bob was a great college player at WVU. Ray was the head coach at West Virginia Tech. He was defensive coordinator at WVU for crying out loud, and of course what Mike has done in boxing is immeasurable.”
The plan is to induct 10 members for the inaugural class in the not too distant future.
“Our inductees are pretty clear,” Vincent added. “There are some guys that have to be honored before others. We’ve got a state football championship team in 1966. A state championship wrestling team in 1968. We’ll have some posthumously.
“The ones going in I really feel like they need to be put on a pedestal. That’s kind of why I started this. Gordon Eismon, the pioneer of Wirt County, was an accomplished man. These people aren’t just run of the mill athletes. These guys have accomplished stuff.”
In future years, it’s likely five or six new members will be inducted.
Of course, getting a bank account established as well as a 501(c)(3) nonprofit are things which are currently in the works.
The first official fundraiser will be the Wirt County Sports Hall of Fame golf tournament set for a 1 p.m. start on Sunday, Aug. 13 at Mingo Bottom.
Cost will be $50 per player and the committee is looking for hole sponsors of the event at a cost of $25.
Along with a 50-50 raffle, each foursome member can purchase three mulligans for $5, with a max of a dozen per team, to be used at anytime.
If interested, call the course at (304) 275-3378.