2023SummerWarriorWEB

but it has gotten bigger every year. I’ll continue to come back and cook as long as I can. I think it’s important for the players today to see the old guys coming back and get ting together so that one day they’ll remember that and will want to come back and support the program. I hope that one day we have so many people show up that we run out of food!” Amedee was also heavily influenced by his family and gives much credit to his parents for his successes in base ball and in his chosen career. “My dad (Phil Amedee) was one of the most influential people in my life. He was blind but was still my baseball coach and hunting and fishing buddy. He passed away when I was 13, right before my freshman year in high school. He always wanted to be at a high school game with me in uni form, but that didn’t get to happen. That was a big reason that every time I stepped on a baseball field, I played like it would be my last time. After my dad passed, my mom (Vickie Garon) made sure we didn’t miss out on anything, and I can’t thank her enough for that. “My career at ECCC would have not been possible if my mom and sister, Shea Schexnayder, wouldn’t have let me leave home at 17 and come to a town we knew nothing about and have a man we knew nothing about raise me for two years. “I’m thankful Jamie Clark gave a young, skinny kid a chance to play college baseball. Without that opportunity and the lessons learned in my two years at ECCC, there’s no telling where my life would be right now. I would also like to thank all of the instructors, especially Ricky Harrison and Polly Mayes, for everything they did for me. And to all of my former teammates, thank you for pushing me every day at practice to be a better player and person. “I didn’t know it at the time, but from 1990 to 1992, I

Jerry Dupuy was Amedee’s roommate, and he says they still keep in touch. “Our sophomore year, we didn’t realize it, but Jerry and I were pushing each other to get the best out of each other. I was fortunate enough to be asked to throw out the first pitch at an ECCC Baseball game this spring and was really happy Jerry was there and caught it for me. There’s a lot of other guys that played a big part in our success including David Luke, Scott Hines, Gregg Perry, David Martin, Daniel Landry, Fabian Huddelston and Derek Glenn. There were too many to name them all.” Amedee has continued to remain a part of the ECCC Baseball program as an alumnus. He had been introduced to current head coach Neal Holliman shortly after finishing his playing career at the University of West Alabama. The two became good friends and after Holliman got the job at ECCC, Amedee got in touch with him and came over to visit the Decatur campus. “I hadn’t been back to campus in about 12-13 years. After I saw the improvements he was making and knowing what the field used to look like, I just wanted to stay in touch and help support the baseball program that gave me a chance to play college baseball. He’s asked me to speak to a few teams and the thing I express to them is to not take for granted the facilities you have here. When I played, we had one coach, our dugouts were sunk three feet in the ground and your feet would get wet when it rained. We had a chain link outfield fence, no indoor hitting facility, no locker room and no covered seating. I realize times were different in the early ‘90s, but I feel like today’s players need to know how far this program has come and the commitment Neal has put into everything he has here now.” Amedee said he also encourages other baseball alumni to get involved, even if it’s only to come and watch a game and see what the place looks like now. He has taken the lead to make that happen as he organized a reunion of his former teammates a few years ago. “I talked to Neal about coming one weekend and cooking for the team and getting a few of the guys I played with to come visit. We didn’t have a real big turn out the first year,

needed East Central Community College more than anything. My two years at ECCC were the best of my career,” he said. “I was able to continue playing the game my dad taught me and play with guys who I still stay in touch with today.” Amedee and his wife, Becky, have two children, Austin (20) and Alyssa (21), and a son-in-law, Josh. Support Warrior Athletics! Support your favorite

ECCC Warrior sports team by making a recurring or one-time donation online by visiting www.eccc.edu/foundation GO WARRIORS!

ALUMNI NEWS

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