Iconic baseball replaced at Vivion Field

April 6, 2012 at 5:28 a.m. | Updated April 6, 2012 at 5:28 a.m.

Wayne Engelbrecht, a longtime friend of the Ernest Vivion family and great baseball supporter, broke out into spontaneous song, singing "Take Me Out To The Ball Game" Thursday morning at Washington Park. He was at Vivion Field for an informal ceremony to replace the oversized baseball at the park's entrance.
Wayne Engelbrecht, a longtime friend of the Ernest Vivion family and great baseball supporter, broke out into spontaneous song, singing "Take Me Out To The Ball Game" Thursday morning at Washington Park. He was at Vivion Field for an informal ceremony to replace the oversized baseball at the park's entrance.

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Pool

Associated Press

U.S. trooper jogs at the tent city which makes up the legal complex of the U.S. Military Commissions, at Guantanamo Bay U.S. Naval Base, Cuba, in this June 2008 file photo.

A staple of Vivion Field since 1963, the large, iconic baseball has been replaced after it was vandalized last year.

Jefferson City Parks and Recreation Department staff worked to place the new baseball at its spot atop the pole Tuesday, with members of the Vivion family cheering as the ball was placed. The 15-foot-pole also has been moved to a more prominent spot at the entrance to the field.

Paul Beck, park planner with the Parks and Recreation Department, said parks staff were working on the roof of the pavilion last year and three days later someone had vandalized the ball, originally commissioned by Ernie Vivion in 1963.

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