Our Opinion: Vogel Field will remind future generations of a true statesman

How appropriate: Last week, the late Carl Vogel was honored with a ball field in his name.

Vogel was a former umpire and referee for the city’s Jefferson City Parks, Recreation and Forestry Department, where he called slow-pitch recreation softball games, as well as high school football and basketball games.

He was also a successful businessman, who was president of the Jefferson City Coca-Cola Bottling Company.

However, it was his role as a public servant where we, and many people in and around Jefferson City, came to know him.

Vogel won election to the Missouri House in 1990, serving the west side of Jefferson City and Cole County from 1991-2003, when he moved to the state Senate after winning the seat in the November 2002 election. He represented Cole, Callaway, Moniteau, Morgan and Miller counties in the Senate from 2003-11, when term limits forced him to leave the Legislature.

He was a different breed of politician.

In the Capitol, a building that often fuels ego, Vogel was soft-spoken and down to earth. He rarely spoke on the House or Senate floor, but everyone listened when he did. He preferred to work for his constituents quietly behind the scenes, rather than by pontificating at a microphone.

In a sea of public servants, Vogel was a rare statesman.

His service extended to various community boards and commissions as well, including the Jefferson City Area Chamber of Commerce, St. Mary’s Health Center, Missouri Development Finance Board, Jefferson City Housing Authority and Jefferson City CrimeStoppers.

As we reported last week, more than 70 people last Tuesday clapped and beamed up at the new green scoreboard that displayed “Carl M. Vogel Field” in bright white letters, replacing the name “Cosmo Field.”

Vogel died at the age of 61 in 2016 after a battle with pancreatic cancer.

The Jefferson City Parks and Recreation Commission approved renaming Cosmo Field to Vogel Field in June. Commission President Brad Bates proposed the idea since Carl Vogel was a well-known supporter of youth sports.

“It goes without saying that Carl was very successful in his business career and he could have just rested on those laurels, but he gave back to the community and officiated many games and he was always a top donor for kids’ sports,” Bates said. “So it just seemed like a fitting tribute to a wonderful man.”

We commend the commission for bestowing this honor on Vogel. The field will remind future generations of a successful businessman who was both kind and community-minded and served his community in many different ways.

News Tribune