Wheaton Academy unveils $9 million in new athletic facilities
As an alumnus, parent, teacher and now leader of Wheaton Academy, Gene Frost has seen the school though quite a bit.
That history made this weekend's dedication of a $9 million athletic facility project all the more special.
"Personally it meant a lot to me having played in it to provide a facility for the next generation to have what they need to pursue excellence," said Frost, head of school at Wheaton Academy in West Chicago.
Dozens of students, parents, faculty and alumni gathered this weekend to celebrate the completion of the projects Frost said were needed to accommodate the growing number of athletic programs.
More than 600 students play 19 sports at the school, compared to 155 students playing seven sports when the current facilities were built in 1948.
"This allows us to have practice space as well as conditioning space to have a premiere athletic program for all our kids," Frost said.
Crews broke ground on the new Heritage Field House in May 2008. The 38,000-square-foot facility includes three practice courts, locker rooms, a weight room, athletic offices, wrestling room, two classrooms and storage space.
Frost said the field house was built to compliment the existing 60-year-old gym, the Warrior Dome.
That gym was renovated as well. The locker rooms, bathroom and weight room were removed so that it will now fit 1,000 spectators, up from 600. The facility will host the school's varsity sports contests.
"We kept the old character of the gym but it looks totally redone and up to standards for competition," Frost said. "It'll be a great place to play high school sports."
Connecting the Heritage Field House and Warrior Dome is the new Hanson-Lindop Memorial Atrium Building. The atrium has washrooms, concessions and a second floor mezzanine that can host large events. The mezzanine area also has windows that look out onto the gym.
"Many times in life things don't turn out as well as you hoped. This turned out better," Frost said of the projects. "This is spectacular, we're very pleased. All the facilities are done in a cost effective, yet first-class (manner)."
Wheaton Academy launched a fundraising campaign to raise the $9 million and had reached its goal by the end of December 2007. The timing, Frost said, turned out to be crucial since the economy was not yet in serious trouble. He counts the timing, and an estate gift of $800,000 early in the campaign among the miracles involved in the project.
"God knew if we didn't get it done that December we wouldn't have gotten it done," he said.
Ellen Hanson Lindop, a 1942 graduate of Wheaton Academy, was the lead donor on the atrium project and flew in from California to cut the ribbon on her namesake Saturday.
The lead donor for the Heritage Field House is anonymous but wanted to honor the school's past, present and future. Representing that notion of heritage, Donna Bond of the class of 1956 cut the ribbon on the field house along with her granddaughters - Rachael who is an alumna, Mariah who is a current senior and Eaden who will be a freshman next year.
The $9 million athletic facility project is part of a larger $12.8 million capital campaign. The school needs to raise another $2.2 million to meet its goal.