Connecticut Legion Baseball donates $5,000 to OCW
Paul Iverson, assistant director for Connecticut's Legion Baseball Committee, was recognized by National Headquarters for helping the department raise and donate $5,000 to Operation Comfort Warriors. Photo by Clay Lomneth

Connecticut Legion Baseball donates $5,000 to OCW

For many years, three American Legion Baseball coaches in Connecticut had a vision of extending season play for teams not advancing to the state tournament and beyond. When the idea surfaced to host a 2015 postseason tournament, coupled with raising funds for a Legion program to generate added interest, the Department of Connecticut’s Legion Baseball Committee gave its approval, and America’s Heroes Tournament in Support of Operation Comfort Warriors (OCW) was born.

“The whole idea was based on how we can do something good for our veterans and help our kids play baseball longer,” said Paul Iverson, head coach and general manager of New Milford Legion Baseball Post 31's team and assistant director for Connecticut's Legion Baseball Committee.

It was Iverson, Dan Olson and Tim Vincent who were instrumental in getting the postseason tournament organized. The goal for the tournament was to have a minimum of 24 registered senior teams for pool play format, with six teams divided into four pools, as well as to raise $10,000 for OCW by having registered teams pay $100 and collect additional donations during home games.

The tournament generated excitement; 24 of Connecticut’s top senior Legion Baseball teams registered immediately. However, by the time America’s Heroes Tournament in Support of OCW was scheduled to start at the end of July, many of the registered teams had advanced to the state tournament or had injured players. The end result was only nine teams, not enough to conduct the tournament. But the tournament was a success in another way - it generated $5,000 in donations for OCW.

When the tournament was canceled, the registered teams were offered their money back ; there were no takers. This prompted an email blast department-wide for OCW donations, and additional donations poured in from coaches and the state baseball committee.

“The real success is that we handed a check for $5,000 to support veterans," said Iverson, a member of Post 31. "We didn’t get to play baseball, but the veterans won.”

Last month during the National Legion Baseball Conference in Indianapolis, National Headquarters recognized Connecticut’s Legion Baseball program for its OCW contributions. Iverson accepted the award and shared how the tournament was set up and the plans to host another one in 2016.

Iverson, Olson and Vincent formatted the tournament to where it ran itself until the championship game. Teams were given a schedule of dates to play home and away games like they would in the regular season, and then the championship game was to be held at a neutral site with activities and awards “to make it special,” Iverson said. He’s been in communication with other Northeast Legion Baseball teams about their postseason tournaments. Rhode Island hosts a similar tournament and liked the idea of having their championship team play Connecticut’s in the near future.