A new scholarship at Missouri State University-West Plains not only honors long-time local resident and Major League Baseball great Elwin “Preacher” Roe, it also upholds his strong belief in education.
Roe’s sons, Elwin Jr. and Tommy, and their families recently established the Preacher Roe Club Golf Teams Endowed Scholarship to help a full-time student participating in Grizzly club golf achieve his or her dream of a higher education.
“My dad was always interested in athletes and school,” Tommy Roe said during a recent interview, “and he always said his main regret in life was not finishing college. We hope that, with this scholarship, dad can encourage a student to finish their degree.”
Born Feb. 26, 1916, in Ash Flat, Ark., “Preacher” Roe developed a strong love for the game of baseball while growing up and attending school in Viola. After graduating from Viola High School, he enrolled at Harding College in Searcy, Ark., where he averaged 18 strikeouts per game on the school’s baseball team. The statistics were impressive enough to draw the interest of the St. Louis Cardinals and in 1938, just one semester shy of earning his college degree, Roe left college and headed to the big leagues, often telling friends and acquaintances later in life that “when the big leagues called, I couldn’t get there fast enough.”
After being traded to the Pittsburgh Pirates in 1944, Roe led the National League with 148 strikeouts a year later. In ’48, he joined the Brooklyn Dodgers and became one of the greatest pitchers of the era, hurling in three World Series. He was one of the original celebrated “boys of summer,” along with the likes of Jackie Robinson, Duke Snyder, Gil Hodges, Pee Wee Reece and others.
He earned The Sporting News’ pitcher of the year honors in 1951 for his 22-3 record, and he remains the record holder among all Dodger starting pitchers for career winning percentage.
Roe retired from the game in 1954 and moved to West Plains with his wife, Mozee, and their two sons to own and operate a grocery store. Although he no longer played the game competitively, he continued to stay active by organizing and coaching youth baseball.
He served the community in various capacities, including a term as president of the West Plains Chamber of Commerce, as a member of the West Plains Rotary Club board of directors and as a member of the First United Methodist Church board of directors. He also continued to receive honors for his athletic career, being named to the Arkansas and Missouri sports halls of fame and the Brooklyn Dodger Hall of Fame.
At the age of 77, Roe decided to take up the game of golf, a game he played with great enthusiasm up until near the end of his life on Nov. 10, 2008. From the moment he took up a club, he played almost daily and often shot his age on the golf course.
“Dad had three great loves in his life – Mom, baseball and golf. He really loved it,” Tommy explained. “He always said he never would have been as successful in life without Mom. She was his rock. I had two of the best parents in the world. They were my best friends.”
Although Preacher never finished college, Elwin Jr. earned a degree in education and taught speech, debate and English in the Pineville school district before his retirement. He and his wife, Kay, continue to live in that area. Tommy and his wife, Saundra, stayed in West Plains to raise their three sons. Tommy currently serves as a volunteer coach with the Grizzly club golf teams.
Missouri State-West Plains Chancellor Dr. Drew Bennett pointed out that Preacher Roe was a gracious supporter of the university, serving as a member of the Grizzly Booster Club and providing autographs whenever requested.
“We often talk about the value of education, but we don’t always discuss the value of that education to one student,” Bennett said “With this scholarship, Elwin ‘Preacher’ Roe, his wife, Mozee, their sons, Elwin Jr. and Tommy, and their families will be making a difference in the lives of those students who receive this scholarship.”
“I think he’d (Preacher Roe) be proud of this scholarship,” Tommy’s wife, Saundra, said.
The scholarship will be awarded for the first time this fall.
