Two SIUE Alumni and Historic Coach Inducted Into St. Louis Sports Hall of Fame
After an evening of ceremony, two Southern Illinois University Edwardsville alumni and a legendary SIUE coach were inducted into the St. Louis Sports Hall of Fame. The non-profit organization celebrates the history of sports in the St. Louis region.
Dewayne Staats, ’75, current announcer for the Tampa Rays baseball team; John Simmons, ’91, philanthropist, esteemed SIU trustee and contributor to local athletics; and posthumously, Roy E. Lee, foundational baseball coach at SIUE and pitcher for the New York Giants in 1945, were inducted at a 2024 Winter Enshrinement Dinner on Monday, February 12 at the Gateway Convention Center in Collinsville, Ill.
SIUE sponsored the event and two distinguished alumni helped facilitate presentations: Tom Calhoun, ’72, public address announcer for the St. Louis Blues, and Stephen Porter, ’73, sports reporter for local newspapers. Accepting on behalf of his father, Roy E. Lee, was son Bill Lee, ’77.
PHOTOS:
top row, left to right:
1: 2024 inductee acceptant Bill Lee, ’77
2: The Complete 2024 St. Louis Sports Hall of Fame Class
second row, left to right:
1: Joe Pott, SIUE director of athletic communications and broadcasting, presenting 2024 inductee Dawn Elser
2: 2024 inductee Dewayne Staats, ’75
3: 2024 inductee Dewayne Staats, ’75, 2024 inductee John Simmons, ‘91, 2024 inductee Dawn Elser, 2024 inductee acceptant Bill Lee, ’77
third row, left to right:
1: 2024 inductee John Simmons
2: ’91, Steve Porter, ’73, presenting 2024 inductee John Simmons
3: ’91, 2024 inductee Dawn Elser
fourth row, left to right:
1: Tom Calhoun, ’72, presenting 2024 inductee Dewayne Staats, ’75
2: Group Photo of SIUE Representatives and Recipients