GAINESVILLE — In accordance with the Centers for Disease Control’s warning about mass gatherings, the Gainesville Athletics Club has decided to cancel its April 18 Hall of Fame induction ceremony.
Earlier this week, in an effort to slow the spread of the coronavirus pandemic, the CDC advised against gatherings of 50 or more people for the next eight weeks. The Gainesville Athletics Hall of Fame banquet was scheduled for a day five weeks into the eight-week recommendation.
This announcement also comes amid a time of uncertainty as to when regular school activities, including athletics, will resume.
“The (Gainesville Athletics Club) hall of fame planning committee met on Wednesday to discuss specifics about this year’s banquet, but the talk quickly turned to postponing or canceling the banquet due to COVID-19 concerns,” said Gainesville Athletics Director Adam Lindsey.
A postponement date for summer or fall could not be agreed upon, nor was a site available, so the Gainesville Athletics Hall of Fame will have a double induction ceremony in 2021.
“We will still go ahead and have this year’s inductees plaques made and hang them on the (Gainesville Athletics) Hall of Fame wall in the gym,” Lindsey said, “and we’ll look at doing some type of individual recognitions prior to next year’s banquet.
“I certainly hate that it has come to this, but we definitely want to err on the side of caution.”
This year’s induction class, the second for the Gainesville Athletics Hall of Fame, included Billy Lothridge; Tommy Valentine; Patrick Hamilton; Stephanie (Yarem) Ransom; Dr. Tim Fulenwider; and the back-to-back-to-back state championship baseball teams from 1996, 1997, and 1998.
