| Gonzaga
Prepatory School in Spokane, Washington, has a
strong tradition of academic excellence, faith-based
education, and great extra-curricular activities,
especially football. Since its inception in 1887,
the Jesuit school has fielded consistently outstanding
teams.
The
Bullpups have also won state football championships
in 1982 and 1986.
Until
1954, the Bullpups played their home games at
Gonzaga University. Moving to a new campus in
the fall of 1954 brought the enthusiasm of independence,
but home games were moved to the new municipal
field, known as Joe Albi Stadium, named after
an alumnus of the school. Since the move, no home
games have been played there. This fall all of
that changed, thanks to the tremendous support
of benefactors and especially Sprinturf.
Gonzaga
Prep’s practice field, located south of
the school, has always been used for practices,
freshman and junior varsity games, and weekend
Catholic grade school contestants. It constantly
took a beating and by the end of the fall, was
filled with water spots, ruts, and large areas
where the grass was worn off. The school had always
dreamed of an all-weather facility, but didn’t
have the resources to build one.
Gonzaga
Prep is a special Jesuit, Catholic school with
over 870 boys and girls in grades 9-12. 98% of
Prep graduates go on to college. Located in Spokane,
the school’s families are mostly middle-class
hard-working families, who do their best to afford
the school’s tuition. Less than half of
the families are able to do so. In fact, almost
24% of the students would qualify for free or
reduced lunches if they attended public schools.
The school uses what is called the “Fair
Share” tuition program, where the amount
of tuition is determined by what families can
afford, based on their income. The school raises
over $600,000 every year to subsidize this program,
in conjunction with interest from the school’s
foundation. The budget is always tight, but students
continue to receive a great education in the Jesuit
tradition. There definitely was no extra money
for an all-weather field.
The
school began a capital campaign to raise funds
to improve classrooms, build a chapel and renovate
the athletic facilities. As part of that campaign,
benefactors came forward last spring with an offer
to fund part of the expense of a new field. It
still wasn’t possible, though, until Sprinturf
came onto the scene. Through the generosity of
Hank Julicher and Sprinturf, Gonzaga Prep was
given a price for the field that it could afford.
Local construction companies helped the school
through donations of time, reduced prices for
materials, rented bleachers, and expertise. School
staff provided some of the labor on the project.
Starting at the end of June, all of the pieces
came together incredibly well, resulting in a
brand-new lighted field with a beautiful new Sprinturf
surface.
On
Friday, September 16, the Bullpups played their
first home game ever in front of a full house
of over 3,000 fans. Over three generations of
Gonzaga Prep families were there celebrating.
With brilliant lights and a sparkling Sprinturf
field, Gonzaga Prep defeated their opponent 38-0!
The field is now used by the football and soccer
teams, the Catholic grade school leagues and PE
classes. It is the best playing surface in Eastern
Washington and a dream come true for local athletes
and fans of the Gonzaga Prep Bullpups.
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