By Matt O’Donnell
The Vallejo Times Herald
VALLEJO, Calif. — In his 12 years as a Vallejo firefighter and paramedic, Jason Welsh has seen plenty of horrific things happen to good people.
He knew there were a lot of good-hearted people in Solano County but many were unsure how to help out.
And so the Firefighters Local Union IAFF 1186 One Pitch Softball Tournament was launched this summer.
The softball tournament will start at 9 a.m. on Saturday at Benicia Community Park.
The event will raise money for scholarships for teens who want to attend a fire academy and also for families in the community facing hardships.
Fire departments from Vallejo, Benicia, Cordelia, Fairfield, Vacaville, Suisun City, West Sacramento along with Benicia volunteers and Solano County Medic Ambulance Service are scheduled to compete in the tournament.
In addition, the day will also include barbecue, jump houses, volleyball, Frisbee Golf, skate park, face painting and playgrounds.
“There are a lot of big-hearted people in Solano County and they don’t always know how to give back,” said Welsh, a Benicia High School graduate whose parents both graduated from Hogan High School.
Welsh said there was a similar Solano County tournament about 10 years ago but budget cuts eventually doomed the event. He was excited to get it started again, this time with even more of a community feel.
“Kindness is contagious,” he said. “The bottom line is it’s our job to go into burning buildings or to pull limp kids out.
The average person doesn’t want to do that but we’re all type-A personalities so we’re built for it but we’re not necessarily built for other things.”
Also, fellow Bencia High grad, Michelle Gascoigne, will hold a free pitching clinic on the No. 3 field starting at noon. As a junior, Gascoigne went 16-1 for the Oklahoma softball team, helping lead the Sooners to the College World Series.
Oklahoma finished runner-up to Alabama.
Gascoigne said her mother teaches Welsh’s daughter in preschool.
“I am hoping to show them a little bit of everything,” Gascoigne said. “We’ll show them some different grips for pitches and go through some things and if the girls want to ask me questions or just hang out, we’ll do that.”
Welsh was overjoyed to have Gascoigne join the tournament.
“She’s a Division I athlete and she’s back for the summer. It’s great. That’s what I want my daughter to grow up to be like.”
Welsh is unsure what the exact target goal is for donations since the tournament is in the first year. He is hoping to help families who have had loved ones die early, much like his friend who died of cancer in his 30s or other friend who broke his neck driving on Father’s Day.
“The community has a chance to get behind this and this is a chance for firefighters to give back to the community,” he said. “We want people to know that we’re not just there for 9-1-1 calls.”
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