By Jeremy McDonald

jeremymcdonald73@gmail.com

SALEM, Ore.– It’s been one year.  One year, 365 days, since a Salem legend passed-away.

Wednesday, April 20, 2016 marked the one-year anniversary of Francisco “Pancho” Tavera Jr’s death after an eight month battle with esophageal cancer.

He was a ball of energy.  He’ll friend and talk to anyone he’ll meet, his inspiration has been felt across the ages.

He coached.  From tee-ball at Pioneer Little League all the way up to the high school level.  Pancho touched many lives in the McKay area.

“I’m really honored that Pancho’s memory is still alive,” said Pancho’s mother, Yolanda Tavera on her son being recognized a year later.  “Pancho was a very well-known person, he was a good person.  He touched the lives of many, many students.

“But didn’t he just coach Noah and Alex (Tavera), you have a whole bunch of kids that are in the McKay area that belong to McKay that Pancho coached and he touched their lives because he was a coach that respected the kids and the kids respected him because he taught them the game of ball and how to have fun.”

At 6:35am, in the arms of his mother, Yolanda, Pancho passed away after a tough fight with the cancer that took his life.  His message to the McKay baseball team prior to his death was simple, keep fighting no matter what.

The Scots took the message to heart entering their game against West Albany that April 20th afternoon, just hours after Pancho’s death.

Long time friend and former McKay Scot teammate, Don Lien, honored Pancho’s son Noah and the McKay team with shirts in honor of the beloved Pancho.

“It was showing a lot of respect,” said Pancho’s son Noah, a junior at McKay High School and Shortstop for the team.  “It was nice, I really respect them, (Lien) is a good family friend of ours.  I know we would’ve done the same thing for him with how close our families are.  It’s always nice to have people around the community who are like that.”

Fast forward a year later, the Scots are playing Sprague at Sprague High School.

The team, sporting purple socks and purple wristbands, the color for esophageal cancer, in honor of Pancho on Wednesday’s game versus the Olympians.

Though he only met Pancho once before his passing, Scots Head Coach Jerimy Kelley can see the impact that Pancho has had on the community and sees his good deeds through his children with Noah and soon-to-be-freshman Alex.

“I only met him once when he was really sick, but I watched him with the kids and how much he enjoyed his time with them and what an positive influence on all of their lives is inspiring,” said Kelley.  “And now I get the privilege to coach his son and his younger son in the future and you can see what kind of man he was through their behaviors and actions.  So it’s important to honor somebody when they do those kinds of good things.”

By the end of the game, though it read Sprague 12, McKay 0 in a five-inning game, Noah Tavera knows that the score doesn’t state how they represented themselves out on the diamond Wednesday afternoon as they honored Pancho.

“I mean we all grew up around him, we all grew up being coached by him,” said Noah.  “It’s just a blessing to have him here with us.  We all came as a team today, the scoreboard don’t represent how we played but I think we represented him pretty well today.”

Tavera pitched in the game against the Olys, striking out two of his first four batters he faced in the game as people supporting McKay wore purple McKay sweatshirts and T-Shirts honoring Noah’s father.

Not a day goes past that it doesn’t hurt the people who knew and love Pancho.  Family, friends, neighbors, etc.  It’s tough.  It really is tough.

Every day, someone brings up the memories of him in conversation, but it’s all about remembering the good times and remembering the good things that Pancho had with those close and those who knew him.

“It’s tough,” said Noah.  “I think about him every day and there’s not a time that goes by where I don’t.  You just got to play and promise him the things that you promised him.

“My goal, I promised him to play at the next level.  That’s the one goal that I want to reach for him.  I’m just living everyday to its fullest and hope everything goes well.”

The life and memory of one Francisco “Pancho” Tavera Jr will last longer than any words on a page on a website or in a newsclipping. It’ll last, in part, because of the people he touched and affected through his 42 years of life will continue his legacy.

A legacy that was 42 years in the making, but will easily last another 42 years and beyond.

Young and old, the Life and Legacy of Pancho will continue.

“I think Pancho’s legacy will live on forever,” said Pancho’s wife Kasey Tavera.  “He’s affected so many kid’s lives over the course of the 20-years that he was coaching that many of the kids are getting older now, but they’re all different age groups.  It was his passion and when he had kids of his own, it was just that much more important to him to be able to share that with our kids but other people’s kids.

“People looked up to him, he could relate to the things they did and how they played and he’ll tell stories of when he’s played.  He’s so well-known in the whole city that that there’s no doubt that his legacy will live on forever.  My kids will carry on his legacy.”