Extended Family Legacy
Outfield screen donated in memory of Pat Ritter
The centerfield outfield screen at the Comets’ home field at Sportsmen’s Park was formally dedicated Tuesday in the name of Pat Ritter, who died last Christmas Eve. Pictured from left inside the fence are Ritter’s husband, Roger Ritter, daughter Carol Reams, great granddaughter Emerson Bohlen, son Jeff Ritter, son-in-law Curt Reams, son Brian Ritter, and great grandson Cael Bohlen. Charles City head coach Brian Bohlen, far left outside the fence, is married to Pat and Roger’s granddaughter, Kelli.
By John Burbridge
sports@charlescitypress.com
CHARLES CITY — Roger Ritter doesn’t have a granddaughter who plays for the Charles City Comets softball team.
He never had a daughter who played, either.
But Ritter rarely ever misses a game, even under a threat of a washout that plagued the start of the Comets’ Tuesday doubleheader against Waverly-Shell Rock.
“You’ll usually know where to find me … rain or shine,” Ritter said.
The team and program represents an extended family for Ritter.
Though he doesn’t have a granddaughter who plays for the Comets, Ritter does have one — Kelli — married to head coach Brian Bohlen.
And up until three years ago, Ritter knew the players on a first-name basis … or he at least tried to.
“I was the (public address) announcer here for a long time,” Ritter said. “During my final years I was having a hard time pronouncing and making out the names of the players.
“People name their kids much differently these years.”
During the past holiday season, this extended family lost a member when Ritter’s wife, Pat, died on Christmas Eve.
“It was brain cancer,” said Carol Reams, daughter of Roger and Pat. “She was diagnosed in October and it acted quickly from there.”
Pat Ritter was 77 years old.
Before the doubleheader — which did get in despite the prolonged shower and subsequent fog cover — the family and the Comets varsity team formally dedicated the family’s donation of the centerfield outfield screen in memory of Pat.
“Brian (Bohlen) is the one who came up with the design,” Reams said of the screen. “He’s an art teacher at the school, and he did a good job.”
Though Pat will no longer accompany Roger at the Comet games, the outfield fence will serve as a reminder to her legacy.
“She was a big supporter,” said Ritter, who is optimistic about this season’s version of the Comets.
“They got most of their team back as well as their No. 1 pitcher,” Ritter said. “They lost a few more than they should last year, but they’re looking good so far this year.”
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