"Fields of Dreams" is a Lonoke Middle School EAST project, spearheaded by EAST Champion Sydney Scott and EAST Leader Lyla Aukes.
Our mission is clear:
to prepare and present a comprehensive proposal to the school board advocating for the relocation of our baseball and softball fields, as well as the tennis courts, to the Lonoke High School campus.
Currently, the City of Lonoke at Lonoke Ball Park manages the baseball and softball complex, while the single tennis court resides in City Park. This fragmented arrangement forces our athletes to travel to multiple locations for practice, creating unnecessary logistical challenges that we intend to eliminate.
We have significant space available on our football practice field and adjacent areas, sufficient to house both baseball and softball fields, two tennis courts, and a large concession stand with restroom facilities. To bring this vision to fruition, we will relocate the existing bus barn to the former Lonoke Junior High School site, situated approximately one mile to the east. Furthermore, this project will align seamlessly with the ongoing plans to install turf on the current field at James B. Abraham Stadium, which supports the Lonoke Jackrabbits Football, Soccer, and Track teams.
Establishing our sports complex on the Lonoke High School grounds will deliver numerous benefits: reduced travel time for student-athletes and coaches, increased revenue to support all student-athletes and a vibrant atmosphere at Lonoke High School.
To execute this project effectively, we will utilize powerful tools such as ArcGIS and drone imagery, partnering with key community stakeholders including the Lonoke Public School District Administration, coaches, the school board, local farmers, construction specialists, and structural engineers.
This initiative perfectly aligns with the EAST CART framework. Two months into the project, we have embraced the challenge of thinking critically and creatively to overcome obstacles inherent in a large-scale project. We understand that professional assistance is essential; therefore, we are actively engaging additional community partners. Our school board has commenced collaboration with an architectural firm to develop project mockups. We are ready to submit further designs to the school board and collaborate with the engaged firm. Our project team will concentrate on architecture and computer modeling, exploring tools like SketchUp and ArcGIS while also investigating additional software options.
As emphasized previously, our student-athletes face significant challenges related to travel for practice, and our competitions yield minimal revenue. Constructing this complex on our campus will decisively address both of these issues.
While we have not yet established an online presence for this project, we are committed to doing so once we have more informational graphics to share. Updates will be actively disseminated via the Lonoke Middle School EAST Facebook and Instagram pages, as well as a dedicated project Instagram page. We will harness the hashtag #FODLMSEAST to ensure our message reaches the community effectively.