The Battleford Bandits warm up ahead of their first game against the Unity Panthers at O’Driscoll Field on Friday, June 20, 2025. The game followed a renaming ceremony in honour of longtime umpire and mentor Marilyn O’Driscoll. (Kenneth Cheung/ battlefordsNOW staff)

By Kenneth Cheung

LOCAL LEGACY

‘An unsung hero’: Battleford ball diamond renamed O’Driscoll Field in honour of beloved umpire

Jun 21, 2025 | 2:55 PM

On the first day of summer in Battleford, the community gathered at the Flats Ball Diamond 2 — now carrying a new name.

For the first time, players and families took to O’Driscoll Field on Friday, renamed in honour of Marilyn O’Driscoll, the woman who spent decades shaping the game — and the people around it.

“She was the rock in our life that never went away,” said her great-niece, Jaslyn Schuler. “She was there when we needed her most. When we didn’t even need her, she was still there to make it better.”

O’Driscoll, who passed away in 2023, was remembered as a player, umpire, coach, mentor and friend — a fixture of fastball in the Battlefords and across Saskatchewan.

“She was more than an aunt,” said her niece, Tamille Schuler. “As much as she inspired the community of Battleford, she was that much more to us. We’re just very proud of her — all that she’s accomplished.”

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Longtime friend, teammate and fellow umpire Diane Fedler shared stories from more than four decades of friendship — beginning with a broomball tournament in Saskatoon.

“She offered me a drink of Sprite from a two-litre bottle,” Fedler said. “That should have been my first clue… it was her white lightning — 100 per cent proof homemade hooch. I did manage to swallow it, but it burned all the way down.”

That spark of humour, she said, never faded.

“Shenanigans should have been her middle name.”

Community members gather at the Flats ball diamonds in Battleford on Friday, June 20, 2025, for the official introduction of O’Driscoll Field. (Kenneth Cheung/ battlefordsNOW staff)

Fedler described O’Driscoll as “a stellar athlete with a wicked change-up,” someone who could drop a bunt batting left-handed and beat the throw to first. She was also known for her leadership off the field — volunteering at her parish, delivering vegetables to neighbours, and smoking turkeys for friends between innings.

When O’Driscoll wasn’t playing, she was behind the plate officiating games — or “umping,” as the softball community calls it.

“She was ‘umping’ while still playing…she became head umpire of the local fastball league and would mentor junior umpires and team pitchers and players,” Fedler said. “Many people benefited from Marilyn’s expertise.”

“She didn’t just umpire games, she shaped a generation of players, and we are all better for having known her.”

Marilyn O’Driscoll passed away on Wednesday, August 23, 2023 at the age of 65 years. (photo courtesy/ Eternal Memories Funeral)

Even after hip surgery, O’Driscoll refused to slow down.

“We pretty much had to lock her in her bed so she wouldn’t get out,” Schuler said, laughing. “By that winter, she was climbing trees with my kids and encouraged them to try climb to the top.”

Her sister, Bernadette Leslie, said Marilyn treated the kids she coached like her own.

“She worked so hard with her ‘umping’ and all the children she mentored and helped with learning,” she said. “She always felt that they were her own children because she didn’t have a family of her own, so she enjoyed it so much.”

The decision to name the diamond after her was unanimous.

“It took about half a second in our first board meeting,” said Darren Russell, a coach and the president of the Battlefords Minor Softball Association. “It was going to be O’Driscoll Field.”

He described her as the backbone of the sport in the region — always ready to help, whether mentoring a coach, finding an umpire, sending messages of encouragement or simply sharing a laugh.

“I got multiple texts from her all day long,” he said, recalling one tournament week. “‘Darren, your salsa order is ready.’ Then it went to, ‘How are the girls doing?’ And then there were a few cucumber pictures, because she was bragging about the size of those things in her garden…she loved showing it off.”

Those would be the last messages he received from her.

“All the while that she was checking in…she never really told me anything that was going on,” he said. “She always put others first, no matter what was going on in her life.”

Darren Russell, a coach and the president of the Battlefords Minor Softball Association. (Kenneth Cheung/ battlefordsNOW staff)

For over 25 years, O’Driscoll served as District 7’s umpire — a role she held with care and dedication, according to Yvonne Michnik, who worked alongside her.

“She did do her job perfect,” Michnik said. “She was wonderful to work with. I know I miss her, and I’m sure everybody else here does too.”

Despite all she gave, her family believes she would’ve shied away from the spotlight.

“I think she would be upset about it, because it’s more than she would ever want,” said Jaslyn. “But she did so much more than she ever realized… She brought a light to everyone’s life.”

As the sun set and the first U15 game between the Battlefords Bandits and the Unity Panthers on O’Driscoll Field got underway, Fedler spoke for many in the crowd.

“I think I can speak for all the girls when I say there will never be another Marilyn… and we are so grateful she was part of our lives,” she said.

“She was truly one of a kind and an unsung hero.”

The next phase for O’Driscoll Field includes plans to add an announcer’s booth and a change room for umpires. Russell said the upgrades are part of a broader effort to make it a “signature diamond” — the community’s go-tp field for finals and major games.

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Kenneth.Cheung@pattisonmedia.com