Lawrence Crawford Irving
Born: March 20, 1943 (Chemainus, British Columbia)
Died: November 22, 2014 (Chemainus, British Columbia)

 

There are people in every sports community that everyone knows. Larry Irving, "Mr. Sports Page," is one of those people. Larry devoted over 50 years of volunteer service to the Chemainus and Duncan Baseball Associations.

 

He can easily be classified as a "baseball lifer" from his Chemainus youth and adult playing days, to his coaching and work as a dedicated volunteer with the Chemainus Baseball Association. Larry's quiet demeanor and knowledge of the game served him well through his many years of dedicated work with young players. He was an excellent coach who helped guide many successful teams, including teams that competed at the Youth World Series, Vancouver Island, Provincial, California and Pacific Northwest Championships.

 

Larry has always been willing to make a difference by stepping up to help better the sport as a coach, groundskeeper, umpire, equipment manager and tournament statistician. He was also the Baseball B.C. representative for the region.

 

He was named commissioner of the year in 1988 for his promotion of B.C. Babe Ruth Baseball. He was inducted into the organization’s hall of fame as a builder in 1999. He was inducted in the North Cowichan Sports Wall of Fame in 2013. 

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Away from the diamond, Irving worked at the Chemainus sawmill for MacMillan Bloedel for 20 years before working for another 20 years with Local 580 of the International Longshore and Warehouse Union.

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 Larry Irving accepts his plaque after being inducted onto North Cowichan-Duncan Sports Wall of Fame.

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Sources:

Article from Tom Hawthorn

Article from North Cowichan Sports Wall of Fame Inductees

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We are always looking for photos and information on the history of the baseball field. If you have photos or a story to share. Please email us at info@chemainusbaseball.ca