Material Type

Artifact

Other Name

LEGIONETTES "BANTAM CITY CHAMPS" SPORTS JACKET

Date

1985

Materials

NYLON, POLYESTER

No. Pieces

1

Length

68.0

Width

74.5

Description

BLUE AND YELLOW BOMBER-STYLE JACKET WITH GOLD EMBROIDERED TEXT, “LETHBRIDGE LEGION SOFTBALL” ON CHEST. SLASH FRONT POCKETS WITH YELLOW PIPING, SAME YELLOW PIPING ON OUTSIDE OF SLEEVES. BLUE AND YELLOW KNIT COLLAR AND CUFFS. QUILTED PATTERN INTERIOR LINING. LEFT SLEEVE HAS TWO PATCHES SEWN ONTO SHOULDER: THE ALBERTA PROVINCIAL CREST, AND “BANTAM CITY CHAMPS.” RIGHT SLEEVE HAS TWO PATCHES SEWN ONTO SHOULDER: “HOPE” AND “12 L. FIELD.” BACK OF JACKET HAS GOLD EMBROIDERED CURSIVE ACROSS BACK, “LEGIONETTES.” TWO TAGS ON INSIDE OF COLLAR, FIRST TAG READS, “ADJAC MADE IN CANADA… M-R-175.” SECOND TAG READS, “192 34.” TWO TAGS ON INSIDE OF RIGHT-SIDE, FIRST TAG READS: “SHELL/EXTERIEURE 100% NYLON LINING/DOUBLURE 100% NYLON INTERLINING/DOUBLURE INTERMEDIARE 100% POLYESTER EXLUSIVE OF TRIMMINGS/GARNITURE NON COMPRISE… MADE IN CANADA FABRIQUE AU CANADA.” SECOND TAG CONTAINS MATERIAL COMPLIANCY INFORMATION, “… AN. REG. NO. M-001 NO D’ENRG. MAN.” DUST AND GUNK PRESENT ALONG LEFT SLEEVE, MAJORITY NEAR WRIST. DUST PRESENT NEAR COLLAR ON FRONT OF JACKET. EMBROIDERY ON BACK HAS LOOSE SPOTS IN MIDDLE AND END OF TEXT. ONE SNAG ON COLLAR WHERE KNIT HAS PULLED OUT. SHELL OF JACKET HAS WRINKLES PRESENT THROUGHOUT. OVERALL VERY GOOD CONDITION.

Subjects

CLOTHING-OUTERWEAR

Historical Association

SPORTS

COMMEMORATIVE

ASSOCIATIONS

History

ON NOVEMBER 10, 2021, COLLECTIONS TECHNICIAN, KEVIN MACLEAN INTERVIEWED HOPE WILKIE WIEBE ABOUT HER DONATION OF A SOFTBALL JACKET, AND CORRESPONDING SOFTBALL GLOVE AND SOFTBALL. THE INFORMATION BELOW IS DERIEVED FROM THAT INTERVIEW. WILKIE WIEBE EXPLAINED THE CIRCUMSTANCES OF RECEIVING HER JACKET: “…I PLAYED SOFTBALL SINCE I WAS SEVEN (STARTED IN 1977)... THIS WAS ’85 (COMPLETED GRADE 9), AND EVERY YEAR WE CAME IN SECOND PLACE [AT CITY’S]. EVERY YEAR. AND, THIS YEAR, MY FINAL YEAR I WAS GONNA PLAY [SOFTBALL], WE WON CITY’S! AND, THE LEGION AWARDED US [EACH A JACKET], BECAUSE OF CITY’S, PROVINCIALS, AND THEN WE WENT TO THE ALBERTA SUMMER GAMES AFTER THAT...” WILKIE WIEBE EXPANDED UPON THE GAME AT CITY’S: “THIS IS THE CITY’S (AT DAVE ELTON PARK)… YOU WOULD MAKE IT TO [THE POINT], LIKE WHERE EVERYBODY GETS EXCLUDED. OR, YOU LOSE THAT GAME, YOU’RE OUT; YOU WIN THAT GAME, YOU’RE IN. AND THEN IT GETS DOWN TO, IN YOUR BANTAM (AGE-GROUP) DIVISION, YOU’RE PLAYING AGAINST THAT ONE TEAM, AND EVERY YEAR, IT’S THE SAME TEAM. WE’D ALWAYS GET TO SECOND PLACE. ALWAYS. AND, IT WAS [THE] GOLD AND GOLD PRODUCTIONS [SOFTBALL TEAM]. WE’D ALWAYS LOSE TO THEM. ALWAYS. AND, THAT YEAR, WE WON!... AND, I BELIEVE SHARLA ASPLUND WAS PITCHING, AND SHE’S THE ONE WHO STRUCK ‘EM OUT… IT WAS JUST A WAY OF GOING OUT WITH A BANG. IT’S LIKE, FINALLY, AFTER HOW MANY YEARS, WE FINALLY WON CITY’S, RIGHT? SO, EVERYTHING WE STRIVE FOR, AND WE DID IT!” WILKIE WIEBE ADDED, “…LIKE, WHEN SHE [STRUCK OUT] – WE RAN OUT, AND WE WERE JUST GOING NUTS.” WILKIE WIEBE REFLECTED: “…BUT THAT WAS THE FIRST TIME TO REALLY FEEL THAT ELATION WITH, ‘FINALLY! WE FINALLY DID IT!’ EVEN MY GRANDPA CAME OUT… HE CAME OUT EVERY YEAR, AND IT’S LIKE, ‘FINALLY! FINALLY DID IT, KIDDO.’ I’M LIKE, ‘YEAH, WE FINALLY DID IT.’ WE WERE JUST – WE WERE SO TIRED, AND IT WAS HOT OUT THAT DAY, AND IT WAS JUST - WE WERE JUST HAPPY… WE’D GO TO DAIRY QUEEN A LOT, AFTER GAMES, EVEN THOUGH WE LOST, BUT, AFTER THAT GAME, WE WENT TO DAIRY QUEEN… THE ICE CREAM JUST TASTED A LITTLE BIT BETTER THAT NIGHT!...” WILKIE WIEBE ELABORATED ON RECEIVING HER JACKET: “…IT WAS THE LEGION PICNIC, AND WE WERE ALL GIVEN [A JACKET]… EVERYBODY, ALL THE TEAMS (SUPPORTED BY THE LEGION) THAT KINDA DID THE BEST, GOT JACKETS, AND WE GOT JACKETS THAT YEAR BECAUSE WE WERE GOING TO PROVINCIAL’S...” WILKIE WIEBE COMMENTED: “…I COULD NOT WEAR THE JACKET BECAUSE MY ARMS WERE WAY TOO LONG!... I DIDN’T FUSS. I WAS JUST HAPPY TO GET THE JACKET. AND, SO, I REMEMBER SOME OF THE OTHER GIRLS WEARING ‘EM AT HIGH SCHOOL, BUT I COULDN’T REALLY WEAR MINE, ‘CAUSE I KINDA LOOK A LITTLE FUNNY, LIKE WITH ORANGUTAN ARMS.” WILKIE WIEBE EXPANDED UPON THE CONSEQUENT GAMES FOLLOWING CITY’S: “WE WENT TO PROVINCIAL’S, AND THAT WAS IN LEDUC, ALBERTA… WE BOMBED!... WE DIDN’T EVEN PLACE, NO… I REMEMBER US – WE JUST DID NOT DO GOOD. BUT WE WERE STILL INVITED TO COME TO [THE] (ALBERTA) PROVINCIAL GAMES, WHICH COMBINED TWO OF THE TEAMS… OUR TEAM [WAS] COMBINED FOR THE ALBERTA SUMMER GAMES (IN FORT MCMURRAY). I THINK WE WON TWO GAMES, BUT WE NEVER PLACED ON THERE, EITHER. THERE WAS TOUGH TEAMS [COMPETING]; THAT WAS [FROM] ALL OVER ALBERTA...” WILKIE WIEBE COMMENTED ON WHERE THE JACKET HAS BEEN STORED SINCE RECEIVING THE JACKET: “[THE JACKET HAS] NEVER BEEN USED. NEVER. IT HUNG IN MY MOM AND DAD’S BASEMENT UNTIL MY MOM SOLD THE HOUSE… (ABOUT TEN YEARS AGO) AND THEN SHE ASKED ME IF I WANTED IT BACK, AND I SAID – ‘I TOTALLY FORGOT ABOUT IT’ - IT SAT IN MY CLOSET DOWNSTAIRS… IT’S BEEN THROUGH MOVES, AND COME WITH ME, BUT, WHAT AM I GONNA DO WITH IT?... BUT THAT’S WHERE IT’S BEEN. IT’S ALWAYS BEEN IN A CLOSET, IN A BAG… BUT, I WAS HAPPY MY MOM KEPT MINE, EVEN THOUGH I COULD NEVER WEAR IT.” ON HOW SHE FEELS WHEN SHE DRIVES PAST DAVE ELTON FIELD, WILKIE WIEBE REFLECTED: “…I STILL SEE IT. I DRIVE BY DAVE ELTON IN THE SPRINGTIME, AND IT BRINGS BACK MEMORIES.” WILKIE WIEVE ELABORATED ON WHAT MEMORIES ARE BROUGHT BACK WHEN SHE DRIVES PAST DAVE ELTON PARK: “US SCREAMING!... I DON’T KNOW IF [WE WERE] ALLOWED TO DO IT, BUT, BACK THEN, YOU WOULD TRY TO DISTRACT THE PITCHER. LIKE, YOU’D BE IN THE DUGOUT [MAKING NOISE]… TRYING TO GET THEM NOT TO PITCH VERY GOOD. OR, WHEN THE BATTER CAME UP, TRYING TO DISTRACT THEM. WE GAVE ‘ER ALL!... YOUR LEGGINGS, AND EVERYTHING, WERE BLOODY, BUT THAT’S WHAT WE DID. WE GOT USED TO IT…” FOR FURTHER INFORMATION INCLUDING HERALD CLIPPINGS, ARCHIVAL RESEARCH AND TO SEE THE FULL INTERVIEW TRANSCRIPTS, PLEASE SEE THE DONATION’S PERMANENT FILE.

Catalogue Number

P20210014001

Acquisition Date

2021-11

Collection

Museum

Less detail