Joyce and John Allen were honored during dedication ceremonies for the Allen Athletic Fields at Davis & Elkins College on Saturday.
Under a blue, cloudless sky, Davis & Elkins College Trustee Joyce Allen and her husband, John, tugged down the cover that revealed the archway to the athletic fields bearing their name.
The ceremony Saturday was one of three athletic facility dedications the College celebrated during Alumni Weekend.
Although the archway reads: “Davis & Elkins College Allen Athletic Fields,” its meaning is much deeper to the College and the Allens, the principal benefactors. The new baseball, soccer and softball fields represent an investment of more than $400,000 in private gifts from individuals, foundations and the J.F. Allen Company.
“No one can walk through here without thinking it’s my turn today to give,” D&E’s Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer Kevin Wilson said during the dedication ceremony. “Athletes give every day to their coaches, their school, their teammates. That’s what you two folks have done – given.”
The Allen’s have been longtime supporters of the College, leaving their “footprint” on various facilities and programs, noted Wilson, while serving as an inspiration to everyone who comes in contact with the College. The complex of athletic fields for soccer, softball and baseball at the north end of campus is named for the Allens because of the contributed efforts of the J.F. Allen Co. through its Chairman John C. Allen.
“I hope the state and the country appreciate what a wonderful college D&E is,” John Allen said. “It’s really a gem.”
For Joyce Allen, giving results is joy.
“My parents instilled in us the joy of giving. That’s my motto,” she commented. “There is joy to giving. I hope all of you will have that in your lifetime.”
It was evident Saturday that “joy” was contagious among the crowd of students, faculty, staff, alumni and community members who applauded and cheered for the Allens. The couple received a standing ovation as they were presented with a framed photo of the bronze plaque to be installed at the fields, a soccer ball autographed by D&E athletes, and a bouquet of flowers.
Work on the fields began in 2010. J.F. Allen Engineer Ed Phares noted that three months of endeavor went into moving 25,000 cubic yards of dirt to construct a facility that meets the official specifications. The project also included creating nearly 1,600 feet of drainage around the fields, raising the level of the fields five to seven feet, installing check dams for erosion control, moving two buildings and creating a new pedestrian walkway that connects all three fields.
“This is the best time in athletics at this school,” Wilson said during the ceremony. “It’s not only because we have good coaches, but especially because the facilities have never been this good.”
Wilson added the facility will serve “students, parents, family, friends, the community, camps, and clinics.”
In August, D&E accepted an invitation to the Great Midwest Athletic Conference (G-MAC) beginning with competition in the 2013-2014 athletic season. The conference was approved by the NCAA Division II Membership Committee in February.
“We are truly now a Division II school,” D&E’s Athletic Director and Head Baseball Coach Ron Palmer said. “You don’t know what this [complex] means to me personally, to the student athletes, and all of our community. Everyone who comes here marvels about this complex. There is nothing we can say to thank you enough for what you have done for us.”
Softball field named for D&E’s First Lady Joni Smith
Davis & Elkins College First Lady Joni Smith threw out the first pitch to start the women’s softball game Saturday at the field named in her honor.
The dedication ceremony prior to the game was led by Dr. Mary Ann DeLuca, Chair of the Sport Science Department and Assistant Athletic Director at D&E.
“You are a role model for all women,” DeLuca told the crowd of Smith’s involvement in social work and community service.
Naming the softball field in honor of Joni Smith came at the suggestion of Trustee Joyce Allen. In a letter to Board Chairman Paul Stirrup, she wrote, “I should like to recommend that the new softball area, located on the Allen Athletic Fields, be named for Joni Smith. She goes to all sports games when she is in town, but I know one of her favorite sports is women’s softball. Consequently, I find it only fitting that we name this area in her honor.”
In acknowledging the Trustees’ action in a letter that was shared during the dedication, Joni Smith wrote the Allens: “Never in my wildest dreams would I have imagined my all-time favorite sport resulting in your gifting of the softball field in my honor. As a teenager, I was pitcher for our school’s team and played in college as well. My request to Buck for our honeymoon was that we both bring a ball and gloves so we could play catch. So you see, you are touching me in a very profound way.”
Located at the entrance to the Allen Athletic Fields adjacent to the Charles B. Gates Pavilion and Tower, the new Joni Smith Softball field provides for the first time an on-campus home for the women’s softball program, and includes dugouts, a 20-foot-by-8-foot electronic scoreboard, and specially prepared infield dirt to reduce dust, absorb water, and improve drainage.
A bronze plaque has been placed on the side of the home team dugout in Smith’s honor noting appreciation for her encouragement to students and student athletes.
“Joni, you once again have touched the future and eternity here at Davis & Elkins College,” DeLuca said in concluding her remarks on Saturday.
Golf Academy named in honor of Trustee and Alumnus Dick Seybolt
As the caliber of student athletes continues to rise at D&E, so are student expectations. Some come to the College with high hopes of someday playing professional golf, said D&E Vice President for Student Affairs and former golf coach Scott Goddard.
Since West Virginia winters aren’t conducive to perfecting a golfer’s skills, a solution was needed, noted Goddard, and it was found.
On Friday, the Seybolt Golf Academy was dedicated in honor of Trustee and alumnus Dick Seybolt, who, along with his wife, Arlene, provided funds to make the students’ dream of an indoor practice facility a reality.
“If it wasn’t for them, it wouldn’t have been possible,” Goddard said. “They made it happen.”
Ceremonies were held inside the Martin Field House, followed by demonstrations with the D&E Golf Team in the Academy. It was designed and installed by one of the nation’s top indoor golf turf companies, Turf Solutions.
The Seybolt Golf Academy includes seven different grass heights, a sand trap and a range of putting greens, all designed to develop good playing habits. Built on a contoured base of gravel, limestone dust and sand to help players master their “short” game, there is an adjacent chipping and driving area as well. A computer-controlled golf simulator provides the challenge of playing on six of the world’s renowned championship courses.
The indoor, year-round “golf course” – unlike anything else in West Virginia – is located on the mezzanine of the restored Martin Field House. Already, the facility has helped D&E’s team achieve new records.
In recognition of their generosity, the Seybolts were honored by Head Golf Coach Wally Edgell and the D&E Team as Honorary West Virginians – a special status granted by the Governor – as well as keys to the Golf Academy. They also were given a team picture of the Senator Football squad from the 1960s and an autographed copy of Arnold Palmer’s latest book.
Seybolt, an avid golfer, is a 1963 graduate of D&E. He is Chief Executive Officer of Diamond Coach Corporation in Oswego, Kansas. He and his wife Arlene reside in Oklahoma.
The Seybolt Golf Academy is open to the public. For more information, please visit the D&E Athletic website, www.senatornation.com or call 304-637-1251.
Related to the Presbyterian Church (USA), Davis & Elkins College is located in Elkins, 2 hours east of Charleston, 3 hours south of Pittsburgh and 4 hours west of Washington, DC. For more information about the college, please visit the College website at www.dewv.edu or call 304-637-1243.
