| Press Release |
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| July 23, 2002 |
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Oregon Air Guard civil engineers build facilities, friendships at Corvallis baseball park
CORVALLIS, Ore. - When baseball fans gather at the Corvallis Baseball Park (is that the proper name?) tomorrow (Wed.) at 9 a.m. for the opening ceremony of the American Amateur Baseball Congress's Western Regional Tournament, they're in for a big surprise. The park which has four baseball fieldswas recently upgraded by 15 civil engineers from the Oregon Air National and now includes a new storage facility and ticket booth, new and upgraded irrigation systems, new fencing, and a concrete pad with bleachers. A special presentation to the contributors of this special community project is planned as part of the tournament's opening ceremony, which is open to the public.
According to MSgt. Jeff Roy, structural superintendent for the Portland-based 142nd Civil Engineer Squadron (CES) and military project manager for the Corvallis park improvements, the project was indeed a win/win situation for the Air Guard civil engineers and the Boys and Girls Club of America, the organization hosting the western regional tournament this year.
"Our highly skilled and experienced civil engineers were able to provide much-needed training to newer engineers on a variety of construction disciplines," Roy explained, "and the managers of the Boys and Girls Club were able to get the baseball facilities they needed in time for the tournament."
The engineers constructed a 20x20 foot storage facility and an 8x8 foot ticket booth which gave them experience in framing, siding, roofing, electrical wiring, and concrete pouring.
Other parts of the project - which included the pouring of eight concrete pads for bleachers, the erection of 700 feet of cyclone fencing for the perimeter and the installation/upgrades of four irrigation systems for lawn management - allowed military engineers to operate types of heavy equipment (e.g., a trenching machine, a large tract excavator and a skid steer) they rarely get time on.
Plumbers assigned to the 142nd CES Utility Shop took full advantage of the Corvallis-based training project by engineering sewer plans for a future restroom facility within the baseball park, a real world opportunity that doesn't happen often.
The entire renovation project took 10 days to complete.
Roy is quick to point out, however, the Air Guard civil engineers couldn't have completed the project without the overwhelming support and contributions from members of the Corvallis business community. In total, more than 90 percent of the materials and equipment for the project were donated.
Columbia Concrete and Sawing, for example, supplied all of the cement. They even opened their doors to the Air Guard engineers, allowing them to use whatever supplies needed to complete the project.
Hull Oaks, a Corvallis-based lumber supplier, donated approximately $20,000 worth of wood used in the construction of the storage facility and ticket booth.
The OSU Federal Credit Union donated cash for much needed supplies.
The list of corporate donations goes on and on.
Resources to house and feed the Air Guard civil engineers while at the construction site were funded by the Army's Innovative Readiness Training Program, a program designed to achieve military training while simultaneously adding value to nearby communities.
For more information contact:
Major Donna Prigmore,
503-807-7082
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