Sweetheart Social raises money for causes in honor of Gary
Filice
Gilroy – For seven years now, the Desperado Club members have prepared the warehouse of the Coast Range Brewery, sold tickets and served pasta and tri-tip to nearly 200 people at their annual Sweetheart Social to raise money in hopes that a tragedy that took a friend and teammate will be prevented in the future.
In 1998 42-year-old Gary Filice, a talented pitcher for the Desperados softball team and father of two, died suddenly of a heart attack while standing in the on-deck circle during a game at the Gavilan softball field.
“He was swinging a bat and he fell down and that was pretty much it,” said Desperado member and Coast Range Brewery founder Ron Erskine, who was at Filice’s side that July day.
Wanting to do something to remember Filice, the team came up with an idea: Raise money to make sure that every ballpark in Gilroy has a defibrillator on it.
“We wanted to do something that would be a movement toward preventing what happened to Gary from happening again,” said Erskine, with whom Filice was a partner at the Gilroy brewing company.
Since then, the initial idea has blossomed into the Desperados trying to raise money to put defibrillators in other public places and give money to the Gilroy parks and recreation department so that kids from low income families can participate in city leagues.
Filice, who was born and raised in Gilroy and played baseball and basketball at Palma High in Salinas, had a passion for coaching kids, especially his sons Bryan, now 18, and Kevin, now 23.
“He was a big kid himself, I guess,” said Ann Filice, Gary’s mother, laughing. She and Gary’s father, Ernest, live in Gilroy and attend the Sweetheart Social every year.
Ann and Ernest Filice call the effort the Desperados have put forth in the name of their son “an honor.” But it also reminds Ernest Filice of the pain of losing Gary, who would have turned 50 on Christmas Eve.
“As a parent, you don’t think your children will die before you,” he said. “It’s not easy to handle.”
Even eight years later, the details about the man Gary Filice was are still alive in the memories of the core Desperado members. Gabe Nino, Gary Filice’s friend since the fifth grade, remembers his old teammate as a fiery competitor that he once had to bench during a city league basketball game because he got so upset with a referee’s call. Later that night, Nino received a call from Gary.
“We got home that night at 10 or 10:15,” Nino remembered fondly. “He goes, ‘Gabby, I just wanted to apologize for my actions. It’s just that I try so hard. I want to win so bad.'”
Another teammate, Gavilan College football coach John Lango, remembers Gary Filice always played softball in jeans, while everyone else played in shorts.
The Desperados’ effort to raise money for defibrillators and for the city’s youth leagues is ongoing. In conjunction with the Gilroy Foundation, the club has raised an endowment of $12,000 in Gary Filice’s name. The returns on the endowment are given to the parks and recreation department to pay the league entry fees for underprivileged children.
The Desperados are still selling tickets for their 7th Annual Sweetheart Social, which will take place Saturday Feb. 11. Music and dancing follow dinner, silent auction and raffle.
“I think every attendee I’ve talked to has said it’s easy fun,” Erskine said. “It’s just simple, easy fun.”
Attend the Desperados’ 7th Annual Sweetheart Social
When: Saturday, Feb. 11
6pm-7:30pm – Social & Silent Auction
7:30pm – Dinner & Raffle
Dancing Following Dinner, Raffle
Where: Coast Range Brewery, 7050 Monterey Rd., Gilroy
Cost: $35.00
Dinner includes Salad, Garlic Bread, Tri-Tip, Pasta with Red Sauce and Complimentary Beverages (Beer, Wine, Soda, provided by Coast Range Brewery and Fortino Winery)
All proceeds benefit the community and local youth
For more information, contact Gabe Nino at gn*****@***oo.com or call 848-5691.
