POCATELLO — If you were to ask local resident Denis Yost about how well his three sisters played sports, he’d tell you they were in “A League of Their Own.”

Much like the women portrayed in the classic film about those who played in an all-female baseball league during World War II, former Pocatello residents Faye, Naida and Ruth Yost, who have all since passed away, made significant contributions to the evolution of women’s sports in the Gate City.

Their impact was so substantial that a new mural painted on the side of Lookout Point’s Downtown Center, the home of Historic Downtown Pocatello’s office, was dedicated to the three sisters during a ribbon cutting ceremony on Friday.

“Every night my sisters would play softball all night at Rainey Park with the lights on,” Denis Yost said. “This was before Title IX so there were not really any established all-girls teams. My sisters didn’t care though, they would play with the boys and they were quite the accomplished athletes.”

Faye Yost White Forrey lived from 1930 to 2022, Naida Yost Olson lived from 1931 to 2015 and Ruth Yost Ashcroft lived from 1934 to 2021.

Stephanie Palagi, the president and CEO of Historic Downtown Pocatello, said she first started communicating with both the Yost family and the family of Don Ashcroft, Ruth’s husband, about honoring the three sisters in some way this past January. Palagi said she’s thrilled with how the mural turned out.

“For the last six months or so, this mural just came to life,” she said. “We’re so very happy to have it on our building at the Downtown Center and also as the frame to the playground at Lookout Point. The title of the mural ‘Let’s Play, Pocatello’ just fit so perfectly with what Lookout Point is all about.”

Not only a beautiful piece of artwork, designed and painted by local artist Nick Hottmann, the mural represents history, sports, the celebration of all four seasons and much, much more, Palagi added.

A multitude of sports and outdoor recreation activities including softball, golf, skiing, swimming and, among others, kayaking are showcased on the mural, which boasts a colorful backdrop of bright pink, yellow, blue, green and brown. The mural also pays homage to the historic Idaho State University “I” atop Red Hill.

Both Ruth and Naida were lifelong Pocatello residents, Denis said, adding that of all the 37 places that Faye lived, the Gate City was always home for her, too. Denis said the idea to create a mural for his three sisters was partly inspired by other murals he had seen throughout the country, particularly one in Helena, Montana, that celebrated women of the West and one in Washington, D.C. that paid respect to historical Black jazz musicians.

Denis said, “One thing that has always bothered me is the fact that communities have these people who have lived long, effective lives and once they pass nobody seems to remember anything about them or what they did. Nobody would tell these stories and so I thought, ‘Gosh, while this story is still fresh in my mind I have an obligation to tell it.’”

In their youth, the Yost sisters played on neighborhood softball teams, Denis said. Following World War II, girls’ teams didn’t exist, but that didn’t stop the Yost sisters. They simply joined the boys’ teams.

“I was younger than all three sisters and I just remember that all the boys looked up to them because they could play just as well or better than any of the boys could,” Denis said. “One thing that impressed me about my sisters is that when the boys would pick teams, my sisters were usually the first ones the boys chose to play on their team.”

According to the plaque that will be installed near the mural, when coach Verl Thorncock decided to establish girls’ fastpitch softball in Pocatello, Faye and Ruth eagerly played any position.

“Their enthusiastic example inspired many other girls to participate in the game,” the plaque says. “A new era of softball in Pocatello was born, with men’s and women’s fastpitch softball becoming exceptionally popular under the lights of Rainey Park.”

While the three sisters helped pioneer fastpitch softball in the Gate City, that wasn’t the only sport they excelled at.

“Naida was a champion tennis player and swimmer, Faye played golf and was also on the ski patrol at Alta and Snowbird when she lived in Salt Lake City and Ruth also played golf and was a physical education teacher and coach for School District 25,” Denis said. “All three of them were also really great bowlers and world-class bridge players.”

According to the dedication plaque, “Faye, Naida and Ruth Yost believed that women should have the same opportunities as men to play sports. Their belief became an impetus for Pocatello to become a sports center for all.”

Denis said he believes Hottmann “did a perfect job” designing and creating the mural. Denis expressed his utmost gratitude to all of those who made the mural possible and hopes that it will serve as an inspiration to the youth of the Pocatello area.

“My hope is that some kid looks up at that mural and says, ‘Gee, I could do that, I could play that sport,’” Denis said. “I hope it serves as a reminder that any kid can learn to play softball or baseball or even learn to skateboard or kayak.”

He continued, “I looked up so much to my three sisters and to know they will be honored with this mural is an amazing feeling.”