Vincent Paveskovich papers, 1942-1946

Vincent Paveskovich, also known as Vince or Vinnie Pesky, was a baseball player and coach, educator, and member of the Navy during WWII. He was born in Portland on August 21, 1921 to Croatian immigrants, Jakov and Marija Paveskovich. He had three sisters and two brothers, both of whom also played baseball. His brother Johnny changed his name to Johnny Pesky and was a star player for the Boston Red Sox. Vincent attended St. Patrick’s School and Lincoln High School in Portland, graduating in 1936 and 1940. He enrolled in the University of Portland on a baseball scholarship but entered the Navy in 1942 with his brother, Johnny, as a hospital apprentice. While in the Navy he was stationed at the Naval Air Station (N.A.S.) in Pasco, Washington, and was later transferred to the Naval Air Station in Sand Point, Seattle, Washington. He learned physical training at the Naval Training Station in Bainbridge, Maryland. During this time, he played baseball with many Pacific Coast League baseball players who were stationed with him. He was the Master of Ceremonies for the Friday night dances at the N.A.S. where he worked with the Jive Bombers Naval Air Station Band and actress Mary Scott. Paveskovich was also involved with church services at the station and the opening of a snack bar.

He served in Guam and Hawaii before being discharged in 1946, after which he completed his degree at Portland State University in 1948. He continued playing and coaching baseball into the early 1960s. In 1948, he signed with the New York Yankees farm system and played for the Ventura Yankees and the Victoria Athletics. He coached the University of Portland Pilots in 1950 and managed a team in Calgary Alberta. Paveskovich earned his Master’s in Education in 1956 while teaching at Irvington Elementary School and Lincoln High School. After gaining his master's he worked and coached at Jefferson High School, then at John Marshall High School in 1960 where he later became an administrative assistant.

He retired in 1987 but remained active in Northwest Portland as a member of the Slabtown monthly breakfast gathering and a member (and former president) of the Old Timers Baseball Association of Portland and had been a member and president of the Ex-Newsboys Association. He died at age 99 in 2021.

(Source: Tribute Archive, https://www.tributearchive.com/obituaries/19547448/Vincent-Pesky-Paveskovich; Accessed: December 2023)