Local News

BYU students hope to form official school disc golf team | News, Sports, Jobs

BYU students hope to form official school disc golf team | News, Sports, Jobs

, 0 Comments


The Gofundme to sponsor an official BYU disc golf team had raised $235.

Several Brigham Young University students hope to form the school’s first official disc golf team.

A group of students led by freshman Adam Marshman and senior Jason McDonald are trying to source funds and obtain school support in the creation of an official disc golf team.

This new team would be a separate entity from BYU’s Disc Golf Club, which falls under the jurisdiction of the BYU Student Association.

An upcoming meeting with the Athletics Department will determine whether or not the proposed disc golf team will be able to compete under the school’s name in a more official capacity.

A fundraiser created using GoFundMe entitled “Start the BYU disc golf team,” raised $235 — with a goal of $1,000 — as of Friday evening.

“We have started this fundraiser to help start up the Brigham Young University disc golf team.” reads the fundraiser’s page. “We are looking for funds that will allow us to travel to tournaments and to buy necessities like baskets, discs, and uniforms. Anything you can give would be great!”

According to Marshman, if the team receives this funding it will be easier for them to compete in a tournament two weeks from now.

“A lot of us are putting in our own money to be able to go to this tournament, but if we are able to raise that money it would be a huge help,” Marshman said. “Putting in our own money as college students … it isn’t always the most money.”

For Marshman, helping to form an official disc golf club at BYU would be a way for him to live out his dream of becoming a professional disc golf player.

“It would mean a lot to be able to do this, it would be a lot of fun,” he said. “I’ve always wanted to do it as I’ve seen the sport grow and change … I knew getting out to college, whatever college that may be, that I wanted to create a disc golf team.”

For McDonald, as a senior at BYU, forming a disc golf team would be a way for him to create a legacy before graduating.

“My goal is to create a lasting impression on the disc golf community at BYU,” McDonald said. “I just feel like it’s such a good, positive difference I can make, not only in the realm of disc golf but at BYU.”



Newsletter

Join thousands already receiving our daily newsletter.






Hale Makua moves forward with plans for rehab center | News, Sports, Jobs

Hale Makua moves forward with plans for rehab center | News, Sports, Jobs

, 0 Comments

A rendering shows what Hale Makua’s proposed 76,200-square-foot, two-story rehabilitation center in Kahului would look like. Rendering courtesy of Hale Makua

Hale Makua Health Services is proposing to expand its Kahului care facility to build a “much-needed” skilled nursing and outpatient rehabilitation center in the nearby gateball field, a project that’s been discussed for years amid an expected increase in elderly Maui residents.

The proposed 76,200-square-foot, two-story Hale Makua Rehabilitation Facility would provide services such as physical, occupational and speech therapy; home health and nursing services; and parking.

The nonprofit is taking the next steps toward the project, putting together a draft environmental assessment that was released Thursday in the state Office of Planning and Sustainable Development’s “The Environmental Notice,” which showed an “anticipated finding of no significant impact.”

“The purpose of the proposed project is to provide a much needed rehabilitation facility within the Kahului community,” according to the draft report. “Based on public outreach conducted with the local community, the proposed rehabilitation facility would provide greatly needed health services to Maui’s residents, especially the elderly population.”

The project site would include construction of the commercial building on a 2.8-acre portion of the Kahului Gateball Field, which is managed by the county Department of Parks and Recreation. Nonprofit Hale Makua would lease the land from the county.

A map shows the site plan of Hale Makua’s proposed skilled nursing and outpatient rehabilitation center. Map courtesy of Hale Makua

The Kahului Gateball Field, which is part of the Kahului Community Center Park, would “no longer be available” for recreational users and youth practices, including clubs like Maui Disc Golf Association, Maui Taiko and the American Youth Soccer Organization.

Other alternatives suggested for play include Lihikai Park and Maui High School, and other parks located within the vicinity of the site.

The area is bordered by the Kahului Community Center and Park, the existing Hale Makua Kahului facility and single-family residences and public roadways, according to the report.

Maui County and Hale Makua have spent the past few years paving the way for the planned expansion. In October 2018, before the project had been officially proposed, the Maui County Council passed a resolution that would allow the nonprofit to lease 7.4 acres of the park for future expansion.

In June 2020, the Maui Planning Commission voted unanimously to recommend approval of the request to amend the Wailuku-Kahului Community Plan land use designation from park to public/quasi-public and to change the zoning from residential district to public/quasi-public district.

The draft assessment reports that the existing Hale Makua Kahului Facility is zoned as public/quasi public.

The proposed rehabilitation facility is part of the Hale Makua Master Plan, which also includes renovations to the existing Hale Makua facility in Kahului and relocation of the Wailuku facility services to the Kahului campus.

Estimated costs for Phase 1, which would include the skilled nursing/outpatient rehabilitation center, are $64.2 million, and construction is slated to take 18 months to complete.

According to the document, this would increase “self-reliance and self-determination” for the community by providing health and wellness services locally, rather than having to move or commute to Oahu in order to receive these services.

Phase 2 would include additional kupuna health and social services facilities on 4.6 acres. Both are located in a corner of the park next to the Kokua Pool and Hale Makua and bordered by Uhu and Kaulana streets; they do not include the adjacent soccer fields.

Comments on the proposed rehabilitation facility are due by March 28 and can be sent to [email protected].

The approving agency for the project is the Maui County Department of Parks and Recreation; for more information, contact Samual Marvel at (808) 270-7230, at [email protected] or at 700 Halia Nakoa St., Unit 2, Wailuku, HI 96793.

To review the full draft EA, visit files.hawaii.gov/dbedt/erp/Doc_Library/2022-02-23-MA-DEA-Hale-Makua-Expansion-Rehabilitation-Facility.pdf.

* Dakota Grossman can be reached at [email protected].


Today’s breaking news and more in your inbox



Snowshoes and smiles | News, Sports, Jobs

Snowshoes and smiles | News, Sports, Jobs

, , , 0 Comments

Zachary Sprott-Scribner smiles and sprints on to his second lap of a snowshoe 15K at the Paul Smith’s College VIC on Saturday. He was competing in the Adirondack Snowshoe Fest. PSC snowshoers will be traveling to Wisconsin in two weeks to compete in nationals.
(Enterprise photo — Aaron Cerbone)

SARANAC LAKE — Snowshoers plowed through fresh powder, shot disk golf and played in the snow on local trails this weekend as they competed in the Adirondack Snowshoe Fest.

After the 2017 World Snowshoe Championships brought hundreds of snowshoers from around the world to race here, village Trustee Rich Shapiro said a group wanted to keep that excitement for the sport up, so they started the Adirondack Snowshoe Fest. Shapiro and his wife Lindy Ellis, a Franklin County legislator, organized the festival.

The village is considering applying to host the championships again in 2024 or 2025.

Races this weekend were held at Dewey Mountain and the Paul Smith’s College Visitor Interpretive Center.

Dewey Mountain manager Jason Smith said racers ages 15 to 70 competed on Saturday. Some were visitors, some were locals and some were Paul Smith’s College showshoers preparing for nationals competition in Wisconsin in two weeks.

Alissa Van Zutphen, from Delmar, raced at both locations.

“I had it on my bucket list that I had to do three snowshoe races this year,” she said. “I just met my goal by doing this.”

Van Zutphen said she is a recreational runner, not a competitive one. She’s part of the Albany Running Exchange.

Her first time racing on snowshoes was a couple years ago. She thought a 5K snowshoe race called “Brave the Blizzard” would be a good substitute for a 10-mile race in training for a marathon.

“I had wished I had gone on the long run,” Van Zutphen said with a laugh. “It was the hardest thing I ever did.”

SnowshoeFest2

Douglas Goodfellow of Plattsburgh waves as he completes his second lap of a snowshoe 15K at the Paul Smith’s College Visitor Interpretive Center on Sunday. The race was part of the Adirondack Snowshoe Fest.
(Enterprise photo — Aaron Cerbone)

But she fell in love with snowshoe running. She bought a pair, but after several snow-less winters in Albany, decided to take them out of the closet and run in the North Country.

She said the trails here were “beautiful,” but more “strenuous,” as she was running through deeper snow than she was used to.

The snowshoe festival has been held every year since 2018, with the exception of in 2021, because of the coronavirus pandemic. It’s also grown from snowshoe races to include other snowshoe-related events.

After the races on Saturday at Dewey, the first-ever snowshoe disk golf tournament at the mountain was held. Contestants snowshoed from hole to hole, throwing disks with ribbons taped to them to keep them from getting lost in the deep powder.

On the course, David Gualtieri said he was thankful for the work Eric Moreira put into popularizing disc golf in the area. Moreira designed and helped install the disk golf course on Dewey, as well as the Barkeater course at Paul Smith’s College.

SnowshoeFest5

Brittny Doty lands a putt in a disk golf cage on Dewey Mountain while competing in the first snowshoe disk golf tournament on the course on Saturday, part of the Adirondack Snowshoe Fest. Tom Bell looks on.
(Enterprise photo — Aaron Cerbone)

Moreira said he was excited to see the sport grow. When he moved here six years ago he said the only course around was in Plattsburgh. Now, there are eight or nine courses around.

Gualtieri said there’s a learning curve to the sport, but that it’s fun to pick up and play with friends.

“You hear the chains for the first time and you’re pretty much sold,” he said.

There was also a scavenger hunt for kids and “Forest Bathing” sessions where snowshoers could get closer to nature, immersing themselves in the senses of the forest.

Shapiro was encouraged to see the “Campfire snowshoe shuffle” on the first night attended by mostly people from out of town and state. Smith said it was the most well-attended opening event for the festival so far by a mile.

SnowshoeFest3

Christine Lennon smiles as she rounds out her first lap of a 15K snowshoe race at the Paul Smith’s College Visitor Interpretive Center on Sunday. The race was part of the Adirondack Snowshoe Fest.
(Enterprise photo — Aaron Cerbone)

SnowshoeFest6

Cody Sears, right, lines up a drive on the Dewey Mountain disk golf course while Ben Amos eyes up the toss. The two were competing in in the first snowshoe disk golf tournament on the course on Saturday as part of the Adirondack Snowshoe Fest.
(Enterprise photo — Aaron Cerbone)

SnowshoeFest4

Issoufou Garba-Hama sprints to the finish line at the end of a 5K snowshoe race at the Paul Smith’s College Visitor Interpretive Center on Sunday. The race was part of the Adirondack Snowshoe Fest. Garba-Hama is part of the college’s snowshoe team.
(Enterprise photo — Aaron Cerbone)

SnowshoeFest7

David Gualtieri takes a knee as he lines up an aggressive drive on the Dewey Mountain disk golf course while competing in in the first snowshoe disk golf tournament on the course on Saturday as part of the Adirondack Snowshoe Fest.
(Enterprise photo — Aaron Cerbone)


Today’s breaking news and more in your inbox



Disc golf taking flight at Sam Michaels Park | Journal-news

Disc golf taking flight at Sam Michaels Park | Journal-news

, , , 0 Comments

SHENANDOAH JUNCTION — For those unfamiliar with disc golf, eyebrows can be raised as they see what appears to be a net on a pole in the middle of a field or wooded area.

For those who have a love of the emerging activity, the course is a cherished place for enjoyment.

“Disc golf has been a part of Sam Michaels Park since 2018,” said Tommy Van Vliet, recreation coordinator for the Jefferson County park system. “While we started out slow, it has exploded in popularity over the past few years.”

The first organized meeting of the Eastern Panhandle Disc Golf Club was held in spring 2019, Van Vliet said, mentioning it attracted 14 attendees.

“Since then, each March through October, the club meets on Thursday evenings, in rain or shine, to play a round together,” he said, adding that most nights average between 15-20 players. “The league is free to play, and players of all skill levels join in.”

The open environment of the club has seen the membership grow significantly, with the numbers most recently rising to over 240 active members.

“Not only has disc golf grown rapidly in our area, but, largely due to the COVID-19 pandemic and a renewed desire to be outdoors, disc golf, as a sport, has grown in leaps and bounds across America,” Van Vliet said.

According to Van Vliet, the Professional Disc Golf Association, founded in 1976, now has a membership of more than 200,000.

Sam Michaels Park is currently the only public disc golf course in Jefferson County. The course offers a mix of open field holes, shots through trees and across ponds and utilizes the natural features of the park. The range of difficulty challenges more advanced players, while the less-challenging holes encourage novice players to try the sport.

“According to statistics provided by UDisc, the official scorekeeping and course directory app of the PDGA, Sam Michaels Park Disc Golf Course was played an estimated 6,500 times in 2021, by nearly 700 unique players,” Van Vliet said.

“You can find players of all ages out on the course throughout the day, playing through rain, wind and even snow,” he said, mentioning that Sam Michaels Park was also the site of the Eastern Panhandle Disc Golf Club’s first Glow-in-the-Dark Disc Golf League.

The players in that league spread play over six weeks in October and November on Thursday evenings, using lights to illuminate each basket, along with flashing LED lights or glow-in-the-dark tape stuck to their discs, to enjoy the course in a fun new way at night. Prizes were awarded to the top three finishers over the six-week series, in both recreational and advanced level divisions. The rest of the money collected, as part of the series, was the first step in fundraising for continued growth in disc golf at Sam Michaels Park.

According to Van Vliet, plans made by members of the Disc Golf Club were approved by Jefferson County Parks & Recreation management to make additions to the course in 2022. The current expansion plans will add a new, second tee location to each hole, allowing players the option on each hole to choose between a more challenging starting position and one that is slightly easier and/or closer to the basket.

Additionally, each hole will also have a dedicated “juniors” tee location, allowing younger players or those new to the game to experience the course by starting each hole roughly 100-225 feet from the basket, without any large trees or obstacles to navigate. A small number of baskets will also be slightly moved to increase player safety with higher numbers of players on the course simultaneously.

To raise the additional funds needed for the planned work on the course, the club has organized a GoFundMe page to accept donations.

“Our current goal is to collect $3,500, which will cover the cost of all the planned updates, as well as serve to assist Jefferson County Parks & Recreation maintenance staff with the upkeep and maintenance of the course throughout the year,” Van Vliet said.

Any additional funds raised with the GoFundMe campaign will be put towards future disc golf projects in Jefferson County. Club members hope to raise more to self-fund this project, rather than asking Jefferson County Parks & Recreation for any additional funding.

“We hope that, with increased use and future tournaments being held at the course, that Sam Michaels Park Disc Golf Course and any other properties containing disc golf courses can be revenue-generating features within our parks & recreation system,” Van Vliet said.

Van Vliet can be reached via Jefferson County parks and recreation at 304-728-3207 for more information on the disc golf club.

Mask mandate stays in Warren school district | News, Sports, Jobs

Mask mandate stays in Warren school district | News, Sports, Jobs

, 0 Comments


WARREN — Warren city schools will keep its mask-wearing mandate for students and staff in place for now until there is more changes in the COVID-19 numbers, school officials said.

School Superintendent Steve Chiaro said at Tuesday’s school board meeting that masks mandates will remain in place for Warren schools, but he and other superintendents are watching the case numbers, which have been decreasing lately.

Board member Jenna Daugherty said some school districts have gone from “mask required” to “mask recommended.”

Chiaro said Trumbull County and Warren city health officials still are advising to keep the mask-wearing requirement in place.

“I listen to the local health officials on what they recommend. We are watching the data and number of cases locally to see what we will do in upcoming months,” Chiaro said.

He said at least eight or more Trumbull County public schools are requiring masks for students and staff.

“The first of the year the (COVID-19) cases were very high. We have been seeing a reduction since then and hope that continues. After that we will discuss adjusting the mask mandate, Right now we will continue to closely monitor the numbers,” Chiaro said.

Chiaro said he and other local school superintendents are meeting this week with county and city health officials to discuss the upcoming months of classes.

“it has been a trying time for everyone in the schools and community,” said board member Julian Walker who asked families to be patient.

In other business, Chiaro said the porch remodeling project on the old Harding High School facade has been temporarily delayed due to the recent heavy snow and cold weather.

He said the project, which costs over $100,000, is set to begin again once the weather improves.

“With weather like we have been having, we can’t pour cement or do what we need to do to fix the porch. We are getting close to getting the project done, but the weather has put us back a little,” Chairo said,

In other action, the board:

• Learned from Chiaro that the district has received a $234,090 grant from the Ohio Department of Transportation to be used to help buy three school buses.

• Learned from Chiaro the district will receive a donation of golf disc nets from Young Run’s Disc Golf Course in Champion He said the Champion course received a grant from the Disc Golf Association to replace equipment there. The older equipment will be given to Warren for setting up three courses near schools.

• Reported the McGuffey School Titonics robotics team — led by parent Amanda Colbert and others — will compete March 6 at state championships in Dayton, marking the second time the team has reached that level of competition.

[email protected]



Today’s breaking news and more in your inbox









«‹ 2 3 4 5

DMCA - Terms and Conditions - Privacy Policy