Chicago, IL -
Gary Vien was given an off-white jacket, with red lettering, back in the mid-1980s after an all-star softball game of local gay players. He got it from Sam Molinaro who, in 1979, was named the first president when the Gay Athletic Association ( GAA ) was incorporated.
Vien, now 62, still has the jacket and countless memories from games decades ago—and he wears the jacket annually in the spring on opening day of the Chicago Metropolitan Sports Association ( CMSA ) open division softball season, or if he attends the annual Gay Softball World Series.
The jacket truly is a link to history, connecting generations of Chicago's LGBT community through sports.
GAA started in 1978 with a 16-inch softball league, and was re-named the Metropolitan Sports Association ( MSA ) in 1985. In the late 1990s, MSA became the Chicago Metropolitan Sports Association ( CMSA ), and even was the first organization inducted into the City of Chicago Gay and Lesbian Hall of Fame ( in 1992 ).
CMSA formally celebrates its 35th anniversary on Nov. 9, with a three-hour party, dubbed, Come Out and Play, at The Sports Corner Bar & Grille in Wrigleyville ( 956 W. Addison ), starting at 7 p.m.
Read more from Windy City Times
Vien, now 62, still has the jacket and countless memories from games decades ago—and he wears the jacket annually in the spring on opening day of the Chicago Metropolitan Sports Association ( CMSA ) open division softball season, or if he attends the annual Gay Softball World Series.
The jacket truly is a link to history, connecting generations of Chicago's LGBT community through sports.
GAA started in 1978 with a 16-inch softball league, and was re-named the Metropolitan Sports Association ( MSA ) in 1985. In the late 1990s, MSA became the Chicago Metropolitan Sports Association ( CMSA ), and even was the first organization inducted into the City of Chicago Gay and Lesbian Hall of Fame ( in 1992 ).
CMSA formally celebrates its 35th anniversary on Nov. 9, with a three-hour party, dubbed, Come Out and Play, at The Sports Corner Bar & Grille in Wrigleyville ( 956 W. Addison ), starting at 7 p.m.
Read more from Windy City Times
