Beach Bums Host 13th Annual Fourth Of July Welcome Home Night

TRAVERSE CITY – A tradition continued Wednesday as the Beach Bums hosted their Fourth of July Welcome Home Night for the 13th year.

“I want to honor those that gave us the independence which is the military. So being from the Vietnam era, those guys weren’t welcomed home at all so we named it welcome home, so it’s a 4th of July Welcome Home Celebration, and it’s really meant a lot to us and even more to a lot of the veterans, a lot of veterans,” said Beach Bums owner Jim Wuerfel.

“It was very nice all the support that we got, we always get thanked up here,” said Jeffrey Johnson, an Army and National Guard veteran.

A big motivating factor behind starting the night for Wuerfel was losing his best friend in the Vietnam War.

The celebration included having all the veterans in attendance come on the field, have the players and Mr. Wuerfel shake their hands, and get a standing ovation from the crowd.

This is a tradition that the Bums hope to continue for years to come.

“As long as we’re here at this ballpark, we’ll always honor the vets,” added Wuerfel.

The Beach Bums won their outing against the Miners, 2-0.