Scott Roper of Roper’s Regal Beagle has recognized the importance of giving back to the community and he showed it once again by sponsoring a scoreboard at Gordon Moore Park.
Get The Latest News!
Don't miss our top stories and need-to-know news everyday in your inbox.
There was a brief press event to unveil the first sponsored scoreboard of a new fund-raising campaign Friday morning at Gordon Moore Field No. 3.
Roper said a conversation with Bob Barnhart (director of Public Works for the City of Alton) sparked him to want to donate and sponsor a scoreboard at the park.
“We talked about it and I decided I wanted to donate,” he said. “It will be nice for the kids and families to look up and see the scoreboard and the scores in the game.”
Alton Mayor Brant Walker said Roper’s donation was much in the spirit of Dr. Gordon Moore, who provided the land for the massive park.
“This is an extension of his philosophy that a community comes together for the greater good and and of what Dr. Moore started,” he said.
Walker also emphasized that in this day and age with tight economics for governments, public/private partnerships have to happen for things like a new scoreboard in a park.
“It brings our parks up and gives us a leg up on other parks,” Walker said. “Scott Roper’s example speaks highly of our citizens and how they pull together to improve our parks for the kids. Public/private partnerships are the way to go. We are blessed in Alton to have such good citizens. Without community support like this, we couldn’t do these types of things.”
Through the City of Alton, there are plans underway to upgrade many of the fields, pavilions, bathrooms, concessions and playgrounds at Gordon Moore Park through a combination of grants, city funds and private funds.
New softball, baseball and soccer field scoreboards are needed inside the park.
More than 2,700 people participated in a variety of park activities and more than 1,000 children took part in recreational soccer at the park during 2014. There is an estimated park event attendance of 100,0000 and nearly 1 million people visited Gordon Moore Park in 2014.
Alton High and Marquette High Schools use Gordon Moore Park as home field for soccer, baseball and softball.
Four scoreboards have now been donated and sponsored to the park starting with Roper's gift. Scoreboard sponsorships range from $2,500 to $7,500 per scoreboard. Some have chosen to split a donation/sponsorship of a scoreboard; there is also an option for someone to do it in thirds.
Another scoreboard on a soccer field was sponsored by 1st Mid America Credit Union.
Shell Community Federal Credit Union and Wegman Electric Co. both donated half to another soccer scoreboard on a soccer/football field. Alton Sheppard Morgan Schwaab, Inc. and Phillips 66 Wood River Refinery also split another scoreboard.
Barnhart said the new scoreboard plan also fits right in with Mayor Walker’s philosophy of expanded public/private cooperation.
“Local business owner Mr. Roper reflects that idea of us working in the community as a whole,” he said. “I am elated. We need to modernize certain things and it makes us look more professional. I would like to light up as many fields as we can with new scoreboards. It makes games more competitive and interesting to know the score and how much time is left in the game.”
More like this:
