Mural honors Gil Hodges

By Doug Rapp, Staff Writer

May 08, 2009 07:12 pm

— PETERSBURG—If he paints it, maybe a Petersburg native will get in the Hall of Fame.
Artist Randy Hedden spent this week completing a mural of former baseball great Gil Hodges in downtown Petersburg.
“We want to make a major statement here,” Hedden said. “We want Gil Hodges in the Hall of Fame in 2010.”
Hedden, 56, lives in the Phoenix, Ariz., area now but he grew up in Evansville and went to high school in Petersburg. He said a few years ago he started looking at players getting in the Hall of Fame and couldn’t believe Hodges, who played for the Brooklyn/Los Angeles Dodgers and New York Mets, hadn’t made the cut.
Hedden used to mow Hodges’ mother’s lawn when he was in high school but had no idea Hodges, who grew up in Petersburg, was a baseball star.
“I didn’t know it was Gil Hodges’ mom,” Hedden said. “I just thought it was Irene Hodges.”
Hedden said he had been a Hodges’ fan ever since then, which was when Hodges led the New York Mets to a 1969 World Series victory as manager. Hedden said he remembers Hodges coming back to Petersburg and hanging out with old friends.
“He was a very unassuming guy,” he said. “He would just walk around and blend right in.”
Hedden said he thought Hodges hasn’t been inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame for a variety of reasons. Hodges died in 1972 at the age of 47 from a heart attack, so he’s been “out of sight, out of mind,” Hedden said, plus Hodges never “tooted his own horn” and many of his teammates have passed on.
Hedden said the idea for the mural started when he spoke to former Petersburg mayor, Jack Kinman, now deceased, a few years ago. Kinman wanted to do a mural of famous citizens from Petersburg, including judges and politicians. Hedden suggested he do a mural of Hodges because he said most people when they think of Petersburg, think of Gil Hodges.
Last August, Hedden drew a preliminary sketch and presented it to the city council. They liked it and agreed to raise the money, and Hedden said his company, Artists At Large, was receiving substantially less than their usual $40,000 to $50,000 fee for the mural.
Part of the mural features Hodges at bat, with people visible in the stands behind him. Someone suggested selling individual portraits for the background at $100 a piece. So, Hedden said, any Petersburg resident could donate $100 to have their likeness painted into the crowd. Several people paid to have late family members painted. Hedden estimated approximately $7,000 for the mural was raised this way and the rest was provided by “generous local sponsors.”
The 52- by 16-foot mural, which is at the intersection of SR 57 and Ninth Street in Petersburg, is a free-standing structure that stands parallel to the Mahoney Law Office on SR 57. Much of the material was donated by Sisson Steel and Four Star Fabricators donated labor and the small crane Hedden used to maneuver himself around while painting. Hedden was assisted by Rob Bartlett, who owns a sign company in Washington.
Hedden worked on the mural since Tuesday, taking breaks whenever the weather wouldn’t cooperate. It was supposed to be completed by Friday, but rain delayed much of the work and Hedden planned to finish up work by today. A reception was held Thursday evening to dedicate the mural.
Hedden said the Hodges’ family is aware of the mural and the Mets’ and Dodgers’ organizations were notified as well. Hedden said several of Hodges’ friends showed up through the week to see the work-in-progress.
“They got real emotional,” Hedden said. “One of them commented, ‘Us old guys got this started and we were afraid we weren’t going to live to see this.’ It means a lot to the town.”
“No one’s there to bat for him (Hodges), but we will with this mural.”

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