A victory lap for Lakewood School coach, donors

With help from some local businesses, Lakewood School in Carpentersville will be ready to take a victory lap on a new track Saturday.

The school will host a dedication and picnic to celebrate the new addition, built over the summer with about $30,000 in donated money and labor.

Lakewood physical education teacher Leann Granell last school year decided to do something about the state of the school's old track.

"We pretty much had this muddy path with potholes all over it," Granell said. "District 300 didn't have the funds to do anything about it at the time, so I started looking for benefactors."

Lakewood is a high-poverty school, with 78 percent of students receiving free or reduced-price lunches.

"It would take our parent organization years to raise enough money," Principal Tim Loversky said.

Granell's first call was to Tom Roeser, president of Otto Engineering, Carpentersville's largest employer.

"I had heard they were very generous in the community," Granell said. "Tom Roeser came out about 20 minutes after my initial phone call to him, looked at it, and said, 'We can make this happen.' "

Roeser's company donated $25,000 and coordinated with Dundee businesses Jirsa Construction and Plaza Excavating, which both donated labor.

"It was the right kind of cause," Roeser said. "My employees have been good to me, and this is where they live."

The quarter-mile track will mainly be for students, but it will also be available to the community.

The track will be dedicated at 10 a.m. Saturday at Lakewood School, 1651 Ravine Lane.