They began trickling through the front gates at Dickey-Stephens Park at about 9:15 Thursday morning, underneath a cloudless sky on what could only be described as a perfect day for baseball.
Friends, relatives, former Arkansas Traveler players and team and ballpark employees were among the estimated 250 in attendance at a public memorial service for Bill Valentine, the former general manager of the Arkansas Travelers who for decades served as the face of the minor-league franchise.
Valentine spent 31 seasons as the Travs' general manager, two more in its front office and the last six years as vice president of the Texas League, entertaining generations of baseball fans with never before attempted promotions and stunts and an unforgettable personality. Valentine, 82, died Sunday after a short bout with cancer.
Most of Valentine's tenure was at Ray Winder Field in Little Rock before the stadium closed after the 2006 season and the team moved across the Arkansas River to Dickey-Stephens Park in North Little Rock.
Valentine played an instrumental role in the construction of Dickey-Stephens Park, and it was from behind home plate there that Texas League President Tom Kayser spoke Thursday of their nearly four-decade-long friendship that began with baseball and included a mutual love of fine food, wine and travel.
"I'm going to miss The Bill Show," Kayser said from a podium set up behind home plate, in front of which sat two green, wooden chairs from Ray Winder Field that read "Reserved for Bill Valentine." "I know Bill's memory is going to live on with all of us over the years with the stories his friends will tell whenever we gather.
"There were so many stories the last few days, and of course, his legend will grow with each retelling."
Kayser and Church of Rock Creek pastor Mark Evans, who served as a batboy and a clubhouse manager for the Travs, took turns telling some of their favorite Valentine stories. Most were set during the 33 years Valentine spent with the Travelers, a team that he turned into a must-see summer-night attraction in Little Rock in the 1980s and 1990s.
Kayser recalled Valentine's ability to solve problems among Texas League executives, his seemingly endless supply of trinkets and toys he would give to waitresses and children while out to dinner or on vacation, and an infamous voice mail Valentine left for Kayser at the Texas League office venting frustration about an umpire's willingness to throw out lightly scuffed baseballs.
"It's notable because I think he only used two bad words in the whole five minutes that he spoke," Kayser said.
Evans' stories included one about Valentine sticking up for him after players had pulled a prank on him when he was a batboy, another about Valentine's many disagreements with a Texas League umpire, and of the regret Valentine experienced as an American League umpire after he ejected Detroit Tigers pitcher Dave Wickersham on Oct. 1, 1964, which prevented Wickersham from winning a 20th game that season.
"Bill lived what he called the dream life, and it certainly was," Evans said. "Bill was a very generous and caring person. It was a side of Bill that not everybody always got to see, but I watched Bill many times go out of his way to make sure that a kid made a memory at a ballgame."
Shirley Rieve of Little Rock said she started coming to Travs games at Ray Winder Field in the early 1960s. She didn't know Valentine all that well but recalled the night her sister brought a homemade batch of peanut brittle to the park as a gift for Valentine.
"Then all the time he would say to us, 'Where's my peanut brittle?'" Rieve said. "Then of course she would have to go home and make him some."
Ryan Kurosaki's first year with the Travelers was in 1975, one year after the St. Louis Cardinals signed him as an undrafted free agent pitcher. Kurosaki said there was "no excitement" at Ray Winder Field in 1975, but that changed when Valentine took over operations in 1976.
"Bill just kind of created an atmosphere of a family," said Kurosaki, who pitched for the Travs in 1975-1978 and 1980 and now lives in Benton. "Minor-league baseball has a great debt to Bill Valentine because he created a new entertainment that people enjoy. He transformed minor-league baseball."
Rhys Branman of Little Rock met Valentine at a food and wine club gathering, and that friendship led to Branman visiting the ballpark for a hot dog and a beer.
Branman served as a pall bearer in a private service Wednesday and like other pall bearers wore a pair of suspenders during Thursday's memorial. Branman's suspenders -- decorated with red cardinals -- came from Valentine's collection and were given to him by Valentine's widow, Nena.
"He just loved the game," Branman said. "He loved the joy of putting on a show."
That certainly came through during the memorial service Thursday.
There was a give-away for those in attendance, a miniature replica seat from Ray Winder Field inscribed with the words "Reserved for Bill Valentine." A recording of Valentine urging fans to "Get your lucky scorecards!" was played over the public address system right before the start of the service, which closed with the singing of "Take Me out to the Ballgame."
Kurosaki joked that Valentine, always the salesman, would have loved seeing people file into the park on a Thursday morning -- right up until he noticed one thing.
"They're not paying admission, and they're not buying concessions," Kurosaki joked.
Sports on 05/01/2015