Softball Tournament Keeps Alive Memory of Its Founder

Diane Spiewak was a go-getter—someone dedicated to prompting change when not satisfied with the status quo. 

So when Spiewak and her family moved to the Oak Forest area back in the 1980s and found a lack of playing opportunities for her softball-loving daughter, she set out to change things.

Diane went to work trying to better organize the Oak Forest Park District rec league that played only on Tuesday mornings and combined all the age groups together. Even the umpires consisted of teenage kids who had no experience or training.

“(Diane) took a league that was started and they built it into a good rec league,” said Ted Spiewak, Diane’s husband. “Built their money up to get lights put in (at Gingerwood Park). That’s all important.”

Diane separated the girls into divisions and age groups—making for fairer competition—while Ted organized an umpires organization to get better officiating.

Soon after the league was rolling, Diane set her sights on getting a tournament started.

“It was hard to get teams, so she hounded teams and people to get involved in other communities,” Ted said. “There were times I didn’t see her for days, weekends, because she’d go to other communities just to get them to send a team.”

That perseverance resulted in the Diane Spiewak Softball Tournament, a summer competition for rec league kids to get more practice and playing opportunities after spring leagues ended and schools closed.

At first they played the tournament at several locations around Oak Forest, having to settle for some fields that had gravel playing surfaces. But eventually the tournament was played exclusively at Gingerwood Park after the park district designated a few fields for softball use only.

Diane died in 1995 after a battle with cancer. The tournament was renamed the Diane Spiewak Memorial Softball Tournament and still carries that name today.

“The memorial part of it is absolutely wonderful because it’s what she did,” Ted said. ““I’m very glad that it’s back, and we want to keep it that way.”

This year, more than 300 girls on 22 teams competed in the weeklong tournament that features three different age groups.

On Thursday night, Oak Forest, which fielded three teams in the tournament, lost 5-4 to Tinley Park in a U-14 matchup. The tournament finishes up this weekend and the finals are set to be played on Sunday.

“It’s been a great tournament,” said Dave Silha, the tournament director. “We have a number of good teams out here and a lot of fair competition, which I think is important.”

Ted Spiewak was the umpire for Oak Forest’s night game against Tinley Park on Thursday, continuing his tradition of umpiring in his wife’s tournament every year.

The tournament has is in its 18th year, and Ted hopes it will continue to honor Diane’s legacy.

“It means a lot, and most people that are here right now don’t even know Diane anymore,” he said. “But it still goes on and that’s why I love seeing (her name) up there.”