FRESNO, Calif. (KFSN) — Turn the pages of the book written about Fresno Native Jim Aldredge, Ph.D. and you’ll see some of the many hats he wore in his life.<\/p>\n
That includes being an Edison High baseball player who was drafted to the MLB’s Pittsburgh Pirates, Fresno’s first Black city manager and a professor at Fresno State.<\/p>\n
But ask those who knew him, like fraternity brother and Edison High Principal Joey Munoz, and they’ll tell you he was so much more.<\/p>\n
“The motto of our fraternity is culture for service and service for humanity, and he epitomized that. He was a pure example of that,” Munoz said.<\/p>\n
His life of service was witnessed by a community, including Fresno Unified Board Trustee Keshia Thomas.<\/p>\n
“This is just a man who has really embraced this community. He’s given to this community. He’s embedded himself in this community, and he has ultimately fought for the kids in this community,” Thomas said.<\/p>\n
So when Thomas and other community members were looking for a way to honor his dedication, they decided to name the Edison High Baseball field after him.<\/p>\n
The process took longer than expected because they had to wait for the board to develop a policy for naming facilities.<\/p>\n
Once the policy was in place, a petition was started to formally make the name James E. Aldredge Baseball Field.<\/p>\n
Hundreds of people signed in support, and in January, the Board of Trustees formally approved it.<\/p>\n
The approval sadly came three months after Aldredge passed away.<\/p>\n
His daughter, Lorie Brewer, says she’s thankful the process showed her father’s impact on the community.<\/p>\n
“He touched so many people that I had no idea,” Brewer said. “I wished he could’ve seen it. I wish he could’ve seen the result of who he was.”<\/p>\n
Work is underway to put up a sign with his name on the field.<\/p>\n
Brewer says she hopes that when people see and hear her father’s name, they follow in his footsteps.<\/p>\n
“I just think that he just he would really hope that the community would invest in the families here, the kids here, the people who need stuff. Give them what they need so they can make a difference in the world. Because if we start that way, we’ll have a whole different world going,” Brewer said.<\/p>\n
Baseball is starting soon, and Edison High is planning a ceremony this season to celebrate the field’s new name.<\/p>\n
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