Never Forget 9.
The tribute acknowledges a tragedy that occurred in the summer of 2017 when Chris Godfrey sustained a head injury during a slo-pitch game at Lewis Park in Courtenay, and later lost his life.
The insignia is also inscribed on a baseball design at the new Lewis Diamond 1 Plaza that officially opened Friday at the park.
“I know this is a very emotional event for many people here today,” Mayor Bob Wells said at an opening ceremony at the plaza. “By all accounts, Chris was a very special young man, a lifelong Comox Valley resident with deep ties to our community. This plaza honours his memory.”
Wells said the Never Forget 9 insignia also serves as a reminder of why the Comox Valley Slo-Pitch League has made helmets mandatory. Other leagues have followed suit.
“We hope this project contributes to the league’s efforts to promote safety throughout the sport, so no other family in our community experiences a similar tragedy,” Wells said.
The now-defunct Comox Valley Fields of Dreams Society donated $10,000 towards the project, which improves drainage, safety and accessibility in that corner of the park.
Tayco Paving and Cumberland Ready Mix also contributed by discounting their work in memory of Chris.
“Staff and Tayco Paving and Cumberland Ready Mix knocked it out of the park,” Wells said.
Lindsay Clement of Bloom Landscape Architecture created the design.
reporter@comoxvalleyrecord.com
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