Orange Coast College

Baseball: Hundreds gather to remember Jourdan Watanabe

Monday, March 09, 2009

COSTA MESA -- With a mixture of laughter and tears, hundreds of family members, friends and former teammates gathered at Orange Coast College's Wendell Pickens Field to remember the life of former Pirate catcher Jourdan Watanabe on Sunday.

Watanabe died on Feb. 27 in Irvine at the age of 20. His death is still under investigation with the Irvine Police Department.

During Sunday's service, several people came up to say a few words, including Jourdan's last coach, OCC head coach John Altobelli.

"It has been an absolute privilege to be a part of Jourdan's life for the past two years," Altobelli said. "I remember a few years ago, I moved into a house in Northwood and as I was washing my car one day, I heard a 'PING' sound over and over again, so I went to see what it was and about six houses down, it was Jourdan Watanabe hitting baseballs in his backyard batting cage. I told myself that one day, I was going to get that kid to play at Orange Coast."

With several touching songs played throughout the service, perhaps the most emotional moment came when the entire OCC baseball team, ran out to the field, retrieved a blue and orange balloon and met Jourdan's brother, Lee Watanabe, at home plate. With the song "Somewhere Over The Rainbow" from Hawaiian singer Iz Kamakawiwo'ole playing, Lee released a white balloon for Jourdan and several seconds later, the players released their balloons as a symbol of following Jourdan up to heaven.

A fund has been established to honor the memory of Jourdan Watanabe. For those looking to make a donation, checks can be sent to the following ...

The Jourdan Watanabe Fund
c/o Orange Coast College Foundation
2701 Fairview Road
Costa Mesa, CA 92628-5005

More pictures from Sunday's service can be found by clicking HERE.