The Village of Luxemburg and the American Legion Post 262  held a dedication ceremony Wednesday to rename the village’s baseball field in honor of the late World War II veteran Joe Wessely.

Accompanied by a color guard from the American Legion Post, Village President Ken Tebon said in dedicating the ball field that it had a long history as an important place for veterans to gather for baseball games.  Wessely, who was from Pilsen, played a major role both in the Legion and as a baseball fan..

“There was a lot of work done here by a lot of veterans who had a lot of fun years ago,” said Tebon, noting that the ball games used to be a big night of entertainment for residents in the village.

Joe’s son, Mark Wessely, said that his father served in many roles in the American Legion.and that he “would be pleased and embarrassed at the same time” that the field was named in his honor.

Wessely died in 2015 at the age of 94.

The baseball field is currently used for Little League games and fast-pitch softball, Tebon said.   He said that the new name was preferable to the previous nickname of “Bump and Ugly” given to the field.

This article originally appeared on Green Bay Press Gazette: Luxemburg ball field named in honor of Wessely