Lenape High School turf field project picks up steam
In 2011, the Lenape High School community suffered a big loss with the passing of Geri Alfinito.
As the mother of five students in the Mt. Laurel school district, she was always very involved and was often found at their sporting events.
After shuffling through numerous ideas, members of the community came forward with a project they felt would best honor Geri.
“We wanted to have a turf field installed at the high school in her name,” said Dawn Shelko, executive committee member of the Lenape Turf Club.
This was an idea that was often discussed between Geri and her husband Tom.
The fundraising began in November 2014 after the Lenape Regional High School District Board of Education and Lenape High School administration approved the project.
With the vision of honoring Geri and providing the opportunity to help Lenape athletics become more competitive, Shelko and Alfinito created the Lenape Turf Club to operate under the umbrella of the Lenape Athletic Foundation. Shelko and Alfinito were both parents of Lenape lacrosse players at the time.
They stood by their belief that lacrosse on turf is a different game than lacrosse on grass, and it’s hard to be competitive in a game on turf when you can only practice on grass.
The only challenge that was separating them from making this dream project come true was the $740,000 it would cost to purchase a turf field.
The Lenape Regional High School District said it would be in full support of the project, but it would have to be funded privately. So the Turf Club was faced with the task of raising nearly $1 million in outside donations, without the aid of taxpayer money, similar to how sister schools Cherokee and Shawnee had recently done.
Like most projects, this one has its group of supporters and group of skeptics, but according to Shelko, the club plans on making this idea into a reality as early as next season.
“Ideally, we hope to break ground just after graduation so the field will be ready for the fall season,” Shelko said.
The club has raised about $135,000 thus far and is counting on two upcoming projects to provide large revenues. The club is putting together a “Lenape Turf Kickoff Social” to fundraise for the field. The event is scheduled for Nov. 20 from 8 p.m. to midnight at the Lenola Fire Hall in Moorestown.
The night will consist of food, drinks, music, dancing, a 50/50 raffle and auctions that will include prizes such as Philadelphia Eagles tickets, Philadelphia Flyers tickets, an iPad and more. Tickets will cost $40 per person and guests must be 21 years of age or older.
Another large project the group is working on a grant through the NFL that is sponsored by the Philadelphia Eagles that could be worth up to $200,000. This development was born when Mt. Laurel resident and vice president of ticket and fan services for the Philadelphia Eagles, Laini Delawter, saw an ad for the Turf Club on the MLU website.
“She got us involved in the running for this grant,” Shelko said. “She’s really spearheaded that project.”
The club has to have all of its paperwork for the grant in by February, and the NFL will decide who is most deserving of the money shortly after that.
Along with these projects, the group is still counting heavily on donations.
The plan is to create a wall at Driscoll Stadium displaying the names of donors after the new field is installed. Donors will receive different honors based on the amount of money they donate. There are several levels of donation classes, ranging from the “white” group for the people or companies who donate $500, to the “diamond” group for the people or companies who donate $100,000.
The turf field will be installed inside Driscoll Stadium and will be lined for all field sports. The new field will also be available to the Mt. Laurel community during off hours, similar to how the current field is.
The construction for the new field will not interfere with any sport schedules, and the track and bleachers will not be affected.
Donations can be mailed to Lenape Athletic Foundation/ Turf, 235 Hartford Road, Medford NJ 08055. The committee has also set up a website, www.lenapeturf. com, where residents will be able to make a donation online. Lenape Turf has a Facebook page where the latest news on the project will be posted. For more information on the Lenape Turf Project, or to reserve your tickets to the Kickoff Social, email Shelko at Dawn@lenapeturf.com.
