HOW TO GO
WHAT: Joe Nuxhall Chapter meeting, featuring special guest Hal McCoy, Hall of Fame baseball writer and author of "The Real McCoy"
WHEN: 6:30 p.m. April 12
WHERE: Rick's Tavern, 5955 Boymel Drive, Fairfield
COST: $10 for Reds Hall of Fame and Museum members; $25 for non-members. Food not included.
RSVP: Call Sherry Rowland at 513-765-7926
A group open to all local “Reds Country” residents hopes an upcoming event featuring a Hall of Famer will draw more people to the club that keeps the legacy of Joe Nuxhall alive through various pursuits.
The Joe Nuxhall chapter of the Cincinnati Reds Hall of Fame and Museum is one of 10 chapters located throughout Reds Country, which includes West Virginia, Kentucky, Indiana and Ohio.
Fred Valerius, a friend of Nuxhall’s who helped organize the Fairfield/Hamilton-based chapter, said the group not only promotes the Reds Hall of Fame and Museum, but it also keep the legacy of Joe Nuxhall, who died eight years ago this past November, alive in the community.
“Joe Nuxhall is still a name that resonates with people,” Valerius said.
The Nuxhall name is plastered around the region, including streets in downtown Cincinnati, Hamilton and Fairfield, on statues outside Great American Ball Park and at Water Works Park in Fairfield. He is also the namesake of the Joe Nuxhall Miracle League Fields in Fairfield.
In addition, the Joe Nuxhall Memorial Scholarship fund bestows money to some two dozen student-athletes in Butler County each year.
Kim Nuxhall, one of Joe Nuxhall’s two sons, said he was touched the Butler County community wanted to form a chapter in honor of his dad, which in turn keeps everything Nuxhall-supported alive — from the Character Education Fund to the scholarships and Miracle League Field.
“It’s something he’d be really proud of, that the community is keeping that alive,” Kim Nuxhall said.
Joe Nuxhall not only called baseball games for nearly four decades, but also won 130 games wearing a Reds uniform and remains the youngest player to appear in a Major League Baseball game at 15 years old.
There are about 300 Reds Hall of Fame and Museum members in Butler County, according to Valerius, but only a fraction of those attended one of the two Joe Nuxhall chapter events in 2015.
Valerius, the self-described Butler County chapter “convener,” is hoping an upcoming chapter event featuring Hall of Fame baseball writer Hal McCoy will attract 50 to 60 people.
McCoy will share stories from his four decades covering the Cincinnati Reds during an April 12 event at Rick’s Tavern in Fairfield. More than a few of McCoy’s stories will likely center around Joe Nuxhall, a member of the Reds Hall of Fame and former half of the beloved radio play-by-play tandem affectionately known as “Marty and Joe.”
And any chapter event, like the one in Fairfield, is for all of those who live in Reds Country, not just those who are Reds Hall of Fame and Museum members, said Sherry Rowland, membership coordinator with the Reds Hall of Fame and Museum.
“People really don’t know how extensive (Reds Country) really is,” she said.
By the end of the year, Rowland said she said there will be a total of 15 Reds Hall of Fame and Museum chapters. The museum, she said, helps bring speakers and programming to chapter events.
“These folks are members of the Reds Hall of Fame and they love Reds history. We’re giving them ways to continue on with their membership — and we’re bringing it to them,” Rowland said. “It’s like our own mini Reds Caravan.”
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