HERE & THERE COLUMN

                                      Loyal Fan Get's Team Jacket

  Fan loyalty is the loyalty felt and expressed by a fan towards the object of their fanaticism.
  Fan loyalty, particularly with respect to team sports is different from brand loyalty, in as much as if a consumer bought a product that was of lower quality than expected, they will usually abandon allegiance to that brand.
  However, fan loyalty continues even if the team that the fan supports continues to perform poorly year after year. 
  Psychologists have reported studying fan loyalty, and what causes a person to be a loyal fan, that sticks with a team through adversity, rather than a fair-weather fan, that switches support to whatever teams happen to be successful at the time.
  The entertainment value that a sports fan derives from spectating motivates them to remain a loyal fan and encourages fan bonding which is where a fan bonds with the players, identifying with them as individuals and bonds with the team.
  Team history and tradition is a motivator for fans and these are possibly some of the reasons why 86-year-old Youngsville ladies softball fan Al Picard never misses a Charlie's Angels women's softball league game.
  Al has been coming to every  Angels game for the past three years after being introduced to the team by his barber and Angels first baseman Robyn Gannon.
  Al's comment about the Angels team was "I love my girls."
  A former 37-year resident of White Sulphur Springs Al now makes his home in Youngsville. He served 50 years as a member of the White Sulphur Springs Fire Department.
  Having suffered two heart attacks and having gone through two open heart surgeries and now needing to wear a heart pacemaker  Al Picard has put his health problems aside to  become a faithful loyal fan of the  Charlie's Angels softball team.
  On August 4th the team honored Al with the presentation of a team jacket with his name embroidered on it.
  Making the presentation were first baseman Robyn Gannon and team captain and pitcher Jo Ann Walls.