After helping to unveil a statue of Baseball Hall of Famer Fergie Jenkins in Chicago, Chatham-Kent’s mayor is examining the possibility of immortalizing the local legend within the municipality.
Mayor Darrin Canniff delivered remarks in Chicago on Friday before the Chicago Cubs unveiled the statue of Jenkins at Gallagher Way outside of Wrigley Field.
While in Chicago, Canniff said he spoke with the artist who sculpted the statue, along with one of the Cubs’ owners about installing a replica statue of Jenkins in his hometown of Chatham.
“There’s nothing stopping us from doing a replica here. [And] they agreed that we should have a replica here in Chatham-Kent,” said Canniff. “When they’re doing a statue there, it really [feels] like we should be doing a statue here as well.”
While only in the discussion phase at this point, Canniff said it’s important to recognize the amazing talent that was produced in Chatham-Kent.
“Fergie Jenkins is a legend in Chicago and he’s certainly a legend here,” he said. “It’s an inspiration for all of us when we see people coming from Chatham-Kent and really doing [great] things outside of the community.”
Jenkins pitched at least 20 complete games in six consecutive seasons with the Cubs between 1967-1972. Jenkins was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1991, and had his No. 31 retired in 2009 alongside fellow player No. 31 Greg Maddux.