ATTENTION:

The following note was written in 1995 by Lenny Laakso, FHS Class of 1970.  
Today is December 31, 2003.  Crocker Field is in much better, but not 
perfect shape.  The fence around the park and the concrete roof need
work.  A new two story stucco broadcast booth reachable via a circular 
staircase is finished.  Crocker is still a Fitchburg Gem, the envy of 
all the local high schools and many colleges.

It is my sad duty to report that Don Woods passed away last summer. 

Ken Jones 12/31/02

------------------------------------------------------------

If anyone is wondering about Don Woods and his Crocker Field tee shirts, I
will fill you in. You might know that Crocker Field was donated to the
schoolchildren of Fitchburg by Alvah Crocker in 1917. He went 1st class by
having the facility designed by the Olmsteds, the most respected landscape
architects in America at the time. Over the years, Mother Nature began to
take its toll on the concrete grandstands and on the fence surrounding the
complex. 4 years ago, Fitchburg's Bill Gates and Steve Svolis - knowing that
I am a structural engineer- asked me to take a look at the stands. Although
the stands looked fine from the outside, I was surprised to find that the
underside was in various stages of deterioration. Concerned about the safety
of the stands during the approaching football season, I performed a study and
submitted it to the Fitchburg School Dept. (Doing the study was fascinating.
Through the efforts of Steve Svolis, I learned that the original plans for
Crocker Field are kept by the National Park Service in a humidity controlled
warehouse in Springfield. The Omsted Historic site in Brookline made the
plans available so that I could get the information needed for the study.
This was a life saver.) Don Woods learned of the study and decided to raise
the funds necessary to repair the stands. Don and his committee of FHS alumni
have spent countless hours over the past 4 years raising over $100,000 for
the project. The response from the public and FHS alumni has been gratifying
- it is good to know that Fitchburgers will come through for a worthy cause.
Thanks to the fundraising effort, we were able to complete Phase 1 of the
repairs in 1994. This corrected the most serious structural problems. Phase 2
will be complete by Christmas, as most of the deteriorated concrete has been
repaired. I hope to get Phase 3 done in 1996. This will be preventive
maintenance so that the problems will not recur in the forseeable future. As
a sidelight, I would like to thank my fellow FHS 1970 classmate , Vin
Carbone, for his contributions. When I was looking for a company that
specializes in concrete repairs, I contacted his company in Needham, Mass.,
totally unaware that he worked there. This turned out to be another life
saver, as Vinny, who had run track at Crocker Field for FHS, arranged to have
the work done for a low price and donated some of the materials and labor.
By next year the grandstands should be in good shape. A lot of other work
needs to be done at Crocker so that it remains the best facility around. The
fences need to be repaired, a new press box is needed, and the rest rooms
need some TLC. 

Lenny Laakso