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PENNSYLVANIA TURFGRASS:

KAFMO’s annual Field of Distinction award recipients for 2023 are East Pennsboro Area School District, John Gross Field in Enola, PA and Muncy Bank Ballpark at Historic Bowman Field, the home of the Williamsport Crosscutters. Both facilities deserve recognition for their outstanding record of providing safe, playable conditions for their users. Both fields are also successful examples of an increasingly common arrangement: they are maintained by teams of outside contractors. In the Summer installment of Between the Lines, we took a look at Historic Bowman Field, maintained by BrightView Landscapes. John Gross Field at George R. Saxton Jr. Memorial Stadium is under the care of a groundskeeping team from Aramark. We talked with Grounds Project Manager Keith Evans of Aramark about his experience working with the school district.

Aramark is a facilities services provider to client organizations in education, healthcare, business, and leisure. It operates in North America and internationally and is headquartered in Philadelphia, PA. According to their website, Aramark assembles service teams which bring “passion, experience, and local knowledge” to meet the needs of their client organizations.

Keith Evans certainly brings that promise to life on the groundskeeping team at East Pennsboro. He is passionate about his work, has been working in turf management for over 25 years, and has been an active member of KAFMO since its inception. He is on the KAFMO Board of Directors and is currently serving as Board Secretary.

Professional Networks
Evans understands the value of a professional network. “KAFMO has played a huge role in my career,” he says. “I’ve attended every conference since it was established. The education sessions and the ability to network is priceless. They are constantly providing the latest updates in the industry and staying on top of where the industry is going as technology advances. The nice part about KAFMO is someone with the same issues is just a phone call away.”

The same might be said of his Aramark connections. When asked about the pros and cons of the contract service model for turf management, for example, Keith responded in positive terms. “I can tell you that working with a company like Aramark gives school districts access to a vast community of expertise and resources due to the company’s scale.”

Field of Distinction
The Field of Distinction award is the fulfillment of a goal for Keith Evans and his team at the East Pennsboro Area School District: to have a top athletic facility for their programs. John Gross Field, home of the Panthers, is mainly used for football, but it also hosts soccer and band events as well as community events during the season. The field was originally built in the early 1950’s and underwent renovation in 2020 when Hummer Turfgrass Systems installed a sand grid drainage system and a Hunter automatic irrigation system. The field was finished with 90,000 square feet of Kentucky Bluegrass big roll sod on top of the sand capped field. Evans describes the field as “a showcase for a sense of pride in the school district and the community.”

In 2019, the field was renamed in honor of coach and administrator John Gross. The late John H. Gross Jr. had been inducted into the West Shore Chapter of the Pennsylvania Sports Hall of Fame as a distinguished coach for his many coaching awards, including his undefeated football team in 1959, the Lower Susquehanna Football Championship in 1959, and the Blue Mountain Football Championship in 1962 and 1963. The KAFMO Field of Distinction award constitutes yet another tribute to a respected coach as well as a recognition of the high quality of the field itself.

The grounds team has worked hard to provide a high-level High School field and The Field of Distinction award validates their efforts, Evans says. “Winning Field of Distinction is a strong demonstration of what our staff can accomplish. This award provides us with a sense of accomplishment toward achieving our goal.”

Communication is Key
East Pennsboro Area School District’s goal for the athletics they offer is to provide the students with the opportunity to participate safely in something they enjoy and to equip them with skills they can utilize to prepare for a productive future. A solid relationship between the school district and the grounds crew is of paramount importance in meeting goals and in making sure that the groundskeeping crew is aligned with the larger goals of the school district. And the basis for any good relationship is good communication, according to Evans. “We feel in order to have a strong relationship with the school district, it all starts with communication. Staying in constant communication, we can make sure our goals, methods, and process are all in line. At the end of the day, we all work together to provide positive outcomes for our student-athletes. When challenges come up, communicating with one another is essential for overcoming them.”

Meeting Challenges
Challenges certainly arise. Keith Evans and his team have had to deal with drought issues, disease pressure, and finding the right balance of usage for the field. Having a positive relationship with the school district enables them to overcome these challenges. In times of drought or disease, Evans notes, it has been especially helpful to be able to work with the school’s athletic director to restrict field usage until the drought was over. On other occasions, it may have been necessary to change the mowing and painting schedule due to a game or event that was rescheduled. “We face the same challenges that most groundskeepers at the high school level deal with during the year,” says Evans. “But every challenge can be met with good communication.”

Keith Evans is justifiably proud of the work that his staff has put in and the award they have earned. “The team has grown tremendously over the years with skills and knowledge. Considering the amount of time and energy they have devoted to our student-athletes, it’s great to see them get some recognition!”