Baseball season is upon us and the Jericho Athletic Association tradition of having an Opening Day Baseball Parade was not stopped by the rainy Saturday morning we all woke up to. Without missing a beat, the JAA contingency plan went into effect; with the wind blowing and a steady cold rain coming down, the parade was moved indoors to the Jackson Elementary School gymnasium.

With many of the 700 baseball participants in attendance, with their colorful baseball uniforms, this year the uniforms were those of the Minor League professional teams, the indoor 'parade' was an exciting and successful event. The JAA provided all in attendance with the traditional baseball meal of hotdogs and soda, prepared by Zorn's Catering.

Jon Gelbwaks, executive vice president and director of basketball, thanked everyone for coming out in this bad weather to be part of our Opening Day of the baseball season. He extended his gratitude to the Jericho School Board, school administrators, along with Mr. Hank Grishman, superintendent of schools, for their continued support of our various sport programs, and to Councilman Anthony Macagnone for his kind words.

The participants were surprised by the guest appearances of the Jericho High School Mascot - the 'Jericho JayHawk,' as well as 'Sparky the Dragon' from the New York Islanders and 'Quackerjack' from the Long Island Duck baseball team.

Jon also noted a special thank you to Bill Coyle, JAA director of baseball, and Gary Strauss, president of baseball who have put in countless hours in organizing and getting the teams filled, coaches volunteered and working with the school district to get the fields into great condition. He also thanked the Jericho Athletic Association's Executive Board, Allen Algaze, Chet Bogdan, Craig Marshall, Dick Rosen, Frank Davis, Harold Wanderman, Joel Sweetbaum, Jack Schnitt, Lisa Goren, Marc Wiener. Through these individual's tireless efforts and dedication to the community, along with all our Division Heads and coaches, the Jericho Athletic Association provides a wonderful sport program for the children of our community.

Craig Marshall of the JAA Executive Board eloquently spoke about the loss of Joe Cacciola, a Jericho resident who died this past week on the ball field, while coaching his fifth-grade team. The JAA has announced that this year's Jericho Baseball / Softball season is being dedicated to Joe's memory. The "First Pitch" of the season was thrown out by Joe Cacciola's three sons Daniel, Brendan and Cory.