Sports
Oak Forest Softball Parade on the March
The Oak Forest Park District's girls softball league held its annual parade and opening ceremony Sunday. Officials dedicated a field in honor of Diane Spiewak, who reshaped the Oak Forest league.
Crowds lining Forest Avenue Sunday morning greeted the players and parents in the annual Girls Softball Association with cheers and waves.
Kicking off the season, the parade culminated in .
There, league President Ray Ferralez launched into the festivities and, in a more reflective moment, lead the dedication of a field in honor of . Spiewak, for whom an summer girls softball tournament is named, was instrumental in reorganizing the league into what it is today. She died in 1995 after a battle with cancer.
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"She wanted to better the organization so that all of you girls could grow up in it," Ferralez said.
Cathy Hobgood, Spiewak's oldest daughter, said it meant so much to her mother to have so many girls playing softball in Oak Forest. The league has more than 20 teams and hundreds of players.
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"She always wanted a place for us to play that we didn't have to share with the boys," Hobgood said.
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