South Elgin football closer to home facility

In the words of principal Melanie Meidel, South Elgin sports are "going home."

In an announcement made at halftime of South Elgin's homecoming football game at Millennium Field in Streamwood Friday, Meidel announced that Jeff Wisdom and the Wisdom Family Foundation (Wisdom Adhesives of Elgin) have donated $250,000 toward the construction of an on-campus facility. Currently, South Elgin, Bartlett and Streamwood share Millennium Field.

The donation by the Wisdoms will be used to purchase stadium seating and a scoreboard, the first phase of a three-pronged construction vision.

"It's almost 90 percent," Meidel later said of the probability of Elgin Area School District U-46's newest high school being able to play home games on campus by next August. "The big thing was the stadium, and this will cover the stadium seating and the scoreboard. If we can now get people to donate - add $10,000 here, $50,000 there - we can get the press box."

Phase two of the capital campaign project centers on purchasing lights and synthetic turf. The third phase includes concessions and permanent bathrooms adjacent to the field.

"For now we can put temporary housing up for concessions, and we have the (school) right next to the field for bathrooms next year," said Meidel, who also thanked the boosters in charge of the capital campaign. "We may have to play on Saturdays at first, but we just need to be home."