A powerhouse softball player who represented Bermuda abroad was commended by the Government in 1996 with a sports citation as the longest-serving person on the island playing in the sport — and the longest regular player, with a career spanning decades.

Iona Roach started out with the Dock Hill Rangerettes, who transitioned to the Young Men’s Social Club Jets as the sport, influenced by the US Bases on the island, took off in popularity.

Her brother, John Roach, a footballer with the club, said she took to sport with gusto from playing netball at The Central School (now Victor Scott Primary School).

“Whatever sport was there, she played it,” Mr Roach said.

“When it came to softball, she was a fighter to the end, even if they lost. She was a team player who was always there for you. She didn’t skylark and she was the same way on the job, working at Bermuda Press.

“It was just the way she was.”

Ms Roach also loved travel, particularly to St Kitts in the Caribbean, where the family had roots.

Charlene and Dane Brown, who worked with Ms Roach at Bermuda Press Holdings — where she worked in binding as well as the distribution department — knew her as “Onie”.

The couple said she radiated “a zest for life that was contagious, a spirit that was indomitable, and a heart that was as big as the universe”.

“She would always bring laughter and a sense of humour wherever we would meet, whether at work or at the ballpark.”

Mrs Brown said they worked a night shift at The Royal Gazette where her dedication to the job was “admirable” — but she never let it overshadow the importance of family, friends and “the joys of life”.

However, she “poured her heart and soul” into softball.

“It was inspiring to see the joy it brought her and all of us.”

Ms Roach played slowpitch softball for a host of teams, including the Bermuda Public Services Association, Elbow Beach and the Cock & Feather.

She represented Bermuda at the World Games in the 1970s in Connecticut, played elsewhere in the US and Belize, and pitted her skills against teams from across the Caribbean.

In the parlance of the game, she was known as “a manager’s player”.

Mrs Brown recalled her boundless kindness and generosity.

“Being a member of the many teams, she also seemed to sense when someone needed help and would go out of her way to provide support.”

Winston “JR” Jones, coach of the legendary Big Blue Machine softball team, said: “You might describe her as diminutive, but she was powerful, and it was a lasting strength.

“For the entire season, you could depend on her.”

Ms Roach was a versatile player who shifted easily through different roles on the team — and stuck with the sport for 40 years.

“She was exceptional, with strength in all areas, and a good contact hitter.

“She was always cheerful on the field, in the dugout. She was a leader who kept the team positive.

“As a manager I can say she was the kind that a manager loves to have on their team — reliable, dependable.”

David Hart, the honorary secretary of Young Men’s Social Club, said Ms Roach studied the game and carried herself among her team-mates with the aura of a coach.

“I was her coach, and I certainly can tell you I learnt as much from her as I gave to her.

“She was a very intelligent player. She was not the quickest player in the world, but running the bases you’d think so.”

Mr Hart said the team routinely put Ms Roach on the mound as pitcher against hard-hitting players to throw them off.

She brought an unusual technique to throwing where the ball flew in “a bit of a loop”.

“She got it from point A to point B, and people wondered how the heck she did it.”

He added: “She was a very intelligent player, but I think her biggest attribute was the fact that she was a very good, all-round classy person. A first-class player and a first-class person. Even in her advanced years, she was still young.”

As younger players moved up and senior players retired, Ms Roach remained as a mentor.

As a spectator, she could make her cheers heard over a crowd of thousands in the stands.

Mr Hart added: “She was short in stature, but a giant.”

Fellow player Rosalind Simmons, who played with Ms Roach in the Rangerettes and the Jets, and was on tour with her in Connecticut, called her a team player to the core.

“I represented Bermuda on the national squad in 1974, the world championship in Connecticut, and I believe she and I were the only people from Social Club.

“She was dedicated to Social Club; it was like a second home to her, and she had a love for softball. You would find her at all the games — even if she wasn’t playing, she would be there.”

• Iona Sylvani Roach, one of Bermuda’s top woman softball players, was born on December 13, 1936. She died in March 2024, aged 87