NATCHEZ — On June 23, Natchez lost a key contributor to youth baseball. On August 3-4, the memory of Lavern “Preacher” Brown will once again live in the sport he loved so much, a ballgame.

The first annual Preacher Brown Memorial Softball Tournament starts Friday night at the Vidalia softball fields.

“The money raised from the tournament will go to help with funeral expenses and into the ‘Preacher Brown Scholarship’ fund,” Charlotte Smith said.

Smith is the daughter of Brown.

Brown spent over 30 years volunteering his time and energy preparing the fields at Duncan Park, a great place for youth.

He worked on the fields year round. But it was in February when the hard work started each year. By opening day, Brown had the baseball fields in tip-top shape and during the season he spent his time maintaining the fields and chasing down foul balls.

“He loved nothing more than seeing the joy of the little boys when they were playing ball,” Smith said.

Brown’s grandson, Vick Brown, came up with the idea of starting the annual tournament.

“He has done so much for people, it was a great way of honoring him,” Vick said.

There is a 12-team limit in the double elimination tournament and a $125 entry fee.

“Daddy would be so humbled by this,” Smith said. “He loved any kind of ball and if heaven has a ball field, they got the best groundskeeper ever.”

For more information, contact Vick Brown at 601-431-9211.