Last night we had a special ceremony before the start of games to commemorate the fortieth anniversary of the establishment of the Girls Division in 1982. There were two students at St. Pat’s that were instrumental in getting that part of our program started- Joanie Besselink and Mary O’Neill. This season we recognize the significant contribution made by these pioneers and advocates, with a special patch on the uniforms of all players in our Girls Division. Sadly Joanie passed away earlier this year, but she was well represented at the presentation last night by her husband Rick, her son Ben and her siblings, Mary Jane and John. Mary and her husband were also on hand, with Mary tossing the ball to start the season.
One of the things that we as an organization wanted the families of our league to know, is that Joannie and Mary have had a profound impact on the lives of thousands of girls in our community in the forty years since they so convincingly made their case to Pete Petersen to start a Girls Division. We are proud that they and their extended families have stayed in touch with us, and been key contributors to the league since 1982. We are truly proud to call them part of our basketball family.
