Harvey Boswell Tribute
Harvey Boswell was an every day guy, like most 70 plus ball players still playing the game. He was a WWII Veteran who served with the Air Force as a Navigation Radio Technician. He was a loving husband to his wife Gladys and a caring father to six children; Carol, Bob, Ken, Maureen, Patricia and Glen.
Harvey Boswell was a hardworking individual who worked as a Meteorologist with the Defense Research Establishment Suffield (DRES), while at the same time he operated a Honey Bee operation. In late spring and all summer Harvey would be tending to his Bee Hives and collecting honey early in the morning and still get to work at DRES by 8 AM. One of his favorite pastimes was playing his Blue Fiddle with his band The Cherokee Ranch Boys, at gatherings or dances. However, his very favorite pastime was playing ball. It is his achievements in Softball that has made him one of the more storied ball players to come out of Medicine Hat.
Although Harvey was a solid ball player here in the Medicine Hat Senior Slow Pitch League, his major achievements were playing ball in Scottsdale Arizona, there he achieved what few others have and that was winning two Senior World Series rings after the age of 70. His first world series ring was won in 1991 when Harvey was 72 years of age. His Scottsdale team known as the Arizona 70’s out fought the San Juan Capistrano (California) Angels (two time World Champs) 7 to 6 in seven innings in West Palm Beach Florida to win the 1991 NASC Senior Softball World Series.
His best year of ball was four years later when Harvey was 76 years of age. He had rejoined some of his old team in the over 75 division. They were known as the Arizona Silver Foxes. In route to the World Series they participated in a world championship tournament in Kansas City. The Scottsdale & Mesa Tribune reported that: “The Arizona Silver Foxes made the final, and took a 9-4 lead against a team from Hawaii after Harvey Boswell blasted a grand slam. But Hawaii rallied and took that game 10-9.” They were then off to the NASC Senior Softball World Series in Palm Springs California. The Arizona Republic reported that: “The Foxes opened the elimination round by beating Houston, 12-8. Then came a 20-13 victory over Sacramento, and then an 11-8 win over the Southern California Angels. In the final they trailed 6-5 going into the bottom of the sixth inning. Dale Buisee and Bob Hurst cracked back-to-back triples, and then Harvey Boswell knocked in the game-winning run with a sacrifice fly….” The Arizona Silver Foxes won that 1995 World Series off the bat of Harvey Boswell.
This is why we honor Harvey Boswell and with his surviving children we Establish the Harvey Boswell Memorial Seventies Tournament.
