Andrew Pereman’s spirit on and off the baseball field will be honoured at the inaugural Andrew Pereman Memorial Tournament taking place at the Hendrickson Fields on Saturday (Aug. 18) and Sunday (Aug. 19).

The Squamish man died in a workplace accident earlier this year and is fondly remembered by those in the community and his teammates on the diamond.

“He was just a great guy, always very positive and everyone who knows him from baseball or from work really liked him,” said family friend Jason Merriam, who helped organize the tournament.

Pereman played on the Predators in the Squamish Slo-Pitch Association and also was a key player on the Vancouver Eh travel team.

“Andrew was a great player,” Merriam said, noting Pereman often played in the outfield. “He was really fast and athletic, but he was always really calm on the field and never let anything get him too upset.”

He left behind his wife Natalie Pereman and two young daughters, and Merriam said all proceeds from the tournament will go into a trust fund for his two children.

“We had a similar tournament last year that Natalie and Andrew were involved in helping to set up and this year we just decided to do it in his memory,” Merriam said.

The tournament will see 12 teams from Squamish and the Lower Mainland take to the fields starting at 8 a.m. on Saturday and lasting until 7 p.m. The tournament resumes on Sunday and there will be a beer garden and raffles on both days to help raise funds for the family.

“All of us would like to see the community come out, watch some ball and help support a local family,” Merriam said.

Merriam added that tournament organizers will be accepting donations all weekend and encouraged baseball fans of all shapes and sizes to come check out the games.