A Mars Area School District parent wants to know if the new softball fields will be ready for the upcoming season.
“We have yet to get a very consistent answer on when the field will be done,” Amy Berkopec told the school board Tuesday. “There have been several meetings to which nobody from Mars came to discuss the fields.”
She said a contractor on the job told her that the field will not be ready until late April or the beginning of May. The regular softball season ends May 12.
Mars Area awarded a $671,700 contract to Murin & Murin of Glassport in April 2016. The fields, which are on either side of the road leading to Mars Area Centennial School, were supposed to be completed for the start of softball season this year.
Mrs. Berkopec said the contractor told her that it would cost $15,000 to completely cover the field in sod rather than wait for grass to grow.
“Whatever money we have to put into the field to make it playable, we need to do that,” she said. “The girls have a right to a field. They are a good team. Our coach has been here for almost 20 years. This should be a no-brainer that the girls get equal treatment.”
Superintendent Wes Shipley met privately with Mrs. Berkopec after the meeting to address her concerns.
Two district employees — Charlesa Fassinger, a world language and gifted education teacher at Mars Area High School, and Robert Elliott, a custodian at the elementary school — received awards from the Butler County Chapter of the Pennsylvania Association of School Retirees.
The group chooses two employees from one school district each year for the Lauretta Woodson Award, said Margaret Harding, chapter president and a retired Mars Area Middle School teacher. The districts are chosen on a rotating basis.
Mr. Shipley recommended Mrs. Fassinger for the teacher award and Mr. Elliott for the support personnel award.
Mrs. Fassinger, a 28-year employee, volunteers to run the National Honor Society and has directed the fall plays and spring musicals. “No task is too daunting for Charlie,” Mr. Shipley said. “She is always willing to support students and staff for the betterment of the district and community.”
Mr. Elliott has been a district custodian for three years. Last year, he used the Heimlich maneuver to save the life of a student who was choking. “He is a conscientious worker and is always willing to go above and beyond for students and staff,” Mr. Shipley said.
Sandy Trozzo, freelance writer: suburbanliving@post-gazette.com.
First Published: February 10, 2017, 5:00 a.m.
