Love of the game [Carlsbad Current-Argus, N.M.]

Mar. 28--For one Loving resident, baseball has been a family affair spanning nearly four decades.

Frank Chacon, 71, has volunteered with the Loving Little League for 39 years. He has coached all nine of his children, some of his grandchildren and other family members. He has also coached generation after generation of family baseball players and served as president of the league for several years.

"I coached all my kids and most of my grandkids," Chacon said, noting he began volunteering in 1970 when his oldest son, Alfredo "Freddie" Chacon, played his first season.

"Some of the players I coached ended up coaching against me later on," he added.

Alfredo Chacon is the present baseball coach for Loving High School. He has coached the team to two consecutive state championships.

When Chacon became involved in Little League, there were only four teams. Today, between T-ball, pee-wee and majors, there are nine teams. The Loving league enrollment numbers can't support teams for the minor division.

"In Little League, we use girls," he said.

Chacon not only has a love for the game of baseball, he has a soft spot in his heart for the youngsters who play it. When asked about specific highlights during his 39 years, he couldn't think of any because every game and every child was a highlight for him.

Baseball season is currently underway. This would have been his 40th year of coaching, but he has decided to take some time off.

"I decided not to coach right now maybe

later on," he said.

Chacon played baseball during his junior high school days in Loving and later for the Cavemen junior varsity team. As an adult, he played slow-pitch softball for a decade and played with a league for older players.

"I played ball with the Old Timers until about two years ago," Chacon said, noting he was one of the oldest players.The group traveled around the region playing against other Old Timer baseball teams.

"They looked like T-ballers playing," his wife Nicolasa said with a laugh.

Chacon explained that the Old Timers league allowed two rookies under the age of 35 and the remainder of the players were much older. The Loving Old Timers team is no longer in existence but the one from Carlsbad is still going.

"I was one of the oldest," he said, smiling.

Chacon was nominated for the Little League Volunteer of Year Award on a national level two out of the last three years. The award was sponsored by AIG Companies. The 2007 nomination form states his commitment to the game of baseball and the children of Loving.

It reads: "Loving, New Mexico, is a little village filled with underprivileged children. Mr. Chacon is also known to help these children by transporting them to the games and even paying some of their registration fees.

Today, at the age of 69, Mr. Chacon continues to manage a major league team in his hometown of Loving. He is a fine example of positive coaching as Mr. Chacon well understands the life some of these children lead.

Respect, character, loyalty and most importantly, self esteem are what Mr. Chacon believes are important that these children learn from playing Little League baseball. He has been recognized for his years of service to the community several times by having the privilege of throwing the first pitch.

Mr. Chacon has been known to keep parent involvement as well. Many parents have offered him their support in many areas of the league. As a father of nine, he has had the opportunity to coach all of his children and is now continuing with his grandchildren.

Every year, right before baseball begins, you will find Mr. Chacon at the local Little League preparing the field that he is so proud of. Within the next year, he will have the opportunity to begin work on the new major league field that is scheduled to begin construction within the next few months.

When calling his home during the spring baseball season, his wife of 48 years will simply answer, "Have you checked at the Little League field?"

"He's the biggest volunteer," said his wife.

He and his wife celebrated 50 years of marriage in December and raised nine children: Alfredo, Sylvia, Francisco Jr., Linda, Roberto, Raquel, Rafael, Nicole and Pedro. Seven of the nine went to college. Nicolasa worked for the Loving schools for 34 years, retiring in 2005. She currently works eight hours a week at the community library.

Chacon is still working every day for American National Insurance and serving his first term as a Loving school board member. He also served on the Loving City Council for eight years and was a member of the National Guard for 31 years.

One very important position is his involvement as a member of the Holy Name Society through Our Lady of Grace Catholic Church in Loving.

"We help the church raise funds and we give out two $500 scholarships each year," he said.

Chacon is currently training to be a part of the 100 mile, five-point pilgrimage to Chimayo in June. Each year the beginning point is different. This is his fifth year and he will meet with others on May 30 in Bernal, N.M., near Las Vegas, to make plans for the weeklong pilgrimage.

"We walk about three and a half miles an hour," he said. "We walk about seven miles and then take a 20 minute break."

"We stop at churches to eat, and sleep in schools or churches. We attend daily mass and pray a lot," he added, noting even at the age of 71, he's looking forward to the pilgrimage.

Though Chacon won't be wearing a baseball uniform and won't be out on the field or in the dugout this year, he will be in the stands cheering for his teams.

"I'm getting old and I'm going to watch my grandkids' games this summer," he said.

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