| Today's Feature KOM Reunion Nears.
by John Hall,
Mornin’ Mail corespondent
John Hall is a former
Carthage resident and now spends a good deal of
his time documenting the history of the KOM
(Kansas, Oklahoma, Missouri) Baseball League
which originate in Carthage in 1946. The
following article is an excerpt of his latest
update.
The KOM League Reunion starts
exactly two weeks from yesterday. For many it
will start a day earlier as the attendees descend
upon Carthage for a good nights sleep in
preparation for the activities that lie ahead.
The Week of June 14-20 will be officially
declared "KOM Week" by Kenneth Johnson,
the Mayor of Carthage.
The events of the past week
basically dealt with Reunion planning. A lot of
the things accomplished will result in making the
event "pretty darn classy."
May 25-Lenexa, Kansas With the
assistance of Rosalie Sullivan of Power Sales the
official KOM League Baseball will be ready for
the reunion. Ten dozen have been ordered. They
are a Rawlings ball and on the ball will be the
official seal of the league that you see in many
of the newsletters and also on the first page of
the book, "Majoring in The Minors." The
logo will be in red and underneath the logo will
be the words "Official Baseball of the KOM
League."
There is a reason for that
verbiage. The ball is covered with vinyl and not
meant to be played with. That fits right in with
the majority of former KOM Leaguers. One wag said
that the ball would be of better quality than the
one used in 1948 for no one could hit it either.
When that ball was hit four times it was in the
shape of a cube. I won’t mention it was the
Worth ball. Worth may have improved the quality
of their product over the years and I would hate
to be sued for a product that had a bad
reputation back in the late 1940’s.
KOM Leaguers would rather eat
dirt and die than use aluminum bats. It was
believed that the folks in Carthage could round
us up some wooden bats—wrong. Thus, I went
on a search for some I had sold about 5 years ago
to a local sports store. Of the 86 I sold there
were only 15 left. I bought them back in order
that we could have a ballgame on June 16. I think
I will get those bats signed after the game and
auction them off at the banquet on Tuesday
evening. If any of you guys want to bid on a bat
with the names of Bob Speake, Gale Wade, Bill
Virdon, Ray and Roy Mantle, etc. etc. you better
get your name in the hat real soon. Also, the
same goes for the baseballs. Anyone wanting an
official KOM League Baseball can order one of
them now. After the reunion I won’t promise
anyone that a single one of those will be left. A
fair price on that ball would be $10 plus a buck
or two for shipping.
For as long as I can remember
my life’s goals were: To sing on the Grand
Ole Opry, call an auction and announce a baseball
game on the radio. I can now forget the Grand Ole
Opry dream but it appears I will kill two birds
with one stone while in Carthage. Doing the color
with Grigsby will suffice for the one dream and
auctioning off those game used bats will make the
auctioneer fantasy come true.
At last count there were 286
registrants for the reunion. History tells me
that the number could fluctuate plus or minus
10%. It is not to late to make plans to attend
the reunion if you can possibly make it. On June
4 I have to provide Precious Moments with the
estimate of the number of people that will be
partaking of the meals at each of the banquets
and the going away breakfast on June 18. Then on
June 8 I have to provide the exact number. If a
bunch of folks show up without announcing their
intent in advance their plates will be like
Mother Hubbard’s Cupboard.
The next edition of the KOM
League Remembered will be mailed on June 5. Most
of you will not see that edition prior to the
reunion. Hope to see many of you in Carthage.
Youth Fair Pageant Set
Release from Jasper County
Youth Fair,
Jasper County Extension Center
Plans and rules for the 1998
Jasper County Youth Fair's Queen Pageant has been
announced by director, Gloria Lawrence. The event
serves as the opening ceremony for the annual
Jasper County Youth Fair.
The pageant, with the support
of Missouri Southern State College and other
persons of the community, allows the fair board
to recognize young women of the community for
their accomplishments and achievements while
assisting them with their college education. The
queen will have her choice of a scholarship to
Missouri Southern State College or a $500 cash
scholarship to the school of her choice. The MSSC
scholarship is equivalent to a regent's
scholarship and may be renewed for eight
semesters.
The queen will represent Jasper
County in the Missouri state fair queen contest.
Queen contestants need not be
associated with FFA, nor 4-H.
In addition tot the ceremony,
which is scheduled for July 13th at the Carthage
Senior High School auditorium, this year's event
will include a variety of entertainment. Jim
Jackson, KSN-TV news anchor will serve as Master
of Ceremony and Mark Anthony will be a featured
soloist.
"The pageant is designed
to provide several "learning
experiences" for those who participate in
the pageant," notes Mrs. Lawrence.
Young people who will be
selected as the 1998 Country Little Miss and
Mister will receive a savings bond and other
gifts. The young people are between the ages of
five and seven.
A complete list of rules and
pageant requirements are available at the
university Outreach and Extension Center,
Courthouse, Carthage, MO 64836, 417- 358-2158.
Deadline for application is 4:00 p.m., June 5,
1998.
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