Gordon Bell School finally gets a home field advantage. The core area school officially opened its new green space Monday morning in front of community supporters, and a sea of students in Panther’s purple.
“It’s very exciting that we get to play on it,” said current student Useifa Adams. “Last year we didn’t have this field, we were playing on the courtyard.”
The small asphalt court yard is all students have had for decades. Many current students and alumni have the scrapes and scars to prove they’ve played there, but it’s not all about the threat of injuries.
Playing field sports like soccer or football, meant leaving the community and fans behind.
“We used to have to go to other schools to use their green space, ” Megan George a Gordon Bell alum, and one of the original “Field of Dreams” committee members told Global News.
“Just to have it here and have home games and have our own fans cheer us on, it’ll be awesome.”
The green space took less than five years from idea to reality, but it wasn’t an easy road. A big sports field has a big price tag; 5 million dollars just to get to the end of phase one.
Gordon Bell principal Arlene Skull said she knew it could happen, but never imagined it could be completed so fast.
“I didn’t think it would happen in my time (here). I thought we’d get going, but I didn’t think we’d have that much support.”
The province made major contributions, purchasing the land from Canada Post for $3.8 million, then kicked in another $1.5 million to develop the space.
But it was Gordon Bell students who spear-headed a school and community effort to raise the remaining $500-thousand.
Recent alumni who attended Monday’s celebration are proud they made a difference. Current students are working to keep the momentum going to complete the rest of the project, which will include field lighting, an outdoor classroom and a stage.
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