Wayne Detective Honored At Softball Tourney For Families Of Fallen NJ Officers

WOODLAND PARK, NJ — Law enforcement officers from around North Jersey will step up to the plate for a softball tournament later this spring, in honor of a Wayne detective who died of cancer in February.

Wayne Police will also grab their gloves for the Families Behind The Badge Memorial Softball Tournament, which will be played in memory of Det. First Class Jason "Jay" Clemente.

The event benefits the Survivor and Welfare Fund of the New Jersey State Policemen's Benevolent Association. This fund provides support and benefits to families of PBA members who have died, and also helps officers who are experiencing personal difficulties.

This year's competition, which is on June 1 in Woodland Park, will also remember and pay tribute to Sheriff Richard Berdnik, who died of a self-inflicted gunshot wound in late January. Police from Little Falls, Passaic, Woodland Park, Montclair, and Clifton are among the other participants.

At the tournament on Saturday, June 1 there will also be a beer garden and 50/50 raffle. It will be held at Memorial Field in Woodland Park, time TBD. The rain date will be June 2.

Families Behind The Badge is also taking orders for commemorative t-shirts, which have the names of 14 law enforcement agencies that will be out on the field. Shirts are $20 and can be ordered on Venmo or by email; there will be a limited number for purchase on the day of the tournament. Click here for more info.

Teams consist of various North Jersey police departments, a west Paterson fire company, the Passaic County Sheriff's and Prosecutor's Offices, and New Jersey State Police. The state PBA badge is also pictured on the shirt.