$5.2 million complex opens
to athletes April 15
By Liam Martin ’10
THE ROUNDUP
The Brophy Sports Campus, several years in the making, officially opened in a ceremony on the morning of Thursday, April 15.
More than 300 students, faculty, coaches, administrators and guests gathered on the field and in the stands for the opening prayer.
“Heavenly Father, creator of the world and everything in it, we come together this beautiful morning to thank you for all the gifts you have given us,” began Fr. John McGarry S.J., Jesuit Provincial of the California Province.
He then thanked the engineers, architects, nurserymen and all the people who worked to build the Sports Campus.
“Help us remember that all we do on and off these fields is for your greater glory,” Fr. McGarry finished.
After the prayer, Brophy President Fr. Eddie Reese, S.J. gave the introduction, saying, “This will allow our athletes so much more opportunity.”
He then thanked Fr. McGarry, Xavier Principal Sister Joan Fitzgerald, BVM, Vice-Principal Sister Lynne Winsor, BVM, the Brophy Board of Regents, the Brophy Board of Trustees and all of the people who “shepherded this process and brought this day.”
Brophy Principal Mr. Bob Ryan gave the dedication, during which student and faculty representatives of the various Brophy and Xavier athletics departments were announced and went to stand in a circle in the middle of the field.
In a special thanks to the assistant principal for student activities, Mr. Jeff Glosser, Mr. Ryan said, “There is not a blade of grass or artificial surface (in this Sports Campus) that Jeff Glosser does not know by name. He has been here longer than anyone else who worked on this project.”
Then Fr. Reese blessed the field, walking with Mr. Ryan, Fr. Olivier, Fr. Reese, and Fr. McGarry to sprinkle holy water on the corners of the field.
The ceremony ended with a celebratory salvo from the water cannons with which the field is equipped.
The Sports Campus has been under construction for several years, and in planning stages for years before that. This portion of the campus was built on a budget of $5.2 million, and an Olympic-size swimming pool, a weight room, and a new gym are planned, but do not yet have funding.
