Before the first kick-off of the season on Thursday night, Richmond Community Schools will be dedicating their football field to the late Coach John Kocher and rededicating Ben Boldt Stadium. The Richmond community has a tradition of cheering their football teams on to victory, but they proved their support when they passed a $37.1 million bond proposal two years ago that included a state-of-the-art synthetic turf football field.
Chris Rinehart, Athletic Director for Richmond Community Schools, said he got goosebumps just thinking about how incredible the new football field is. Rinehart said every piece of the field is fantastic, from the color scheme to the feel of the turf, and the whole community is using it.
Rinehart said that the dedication of the field to Coach Kocher is important to the community because Coach Kocher, who battled cancer until his passing in March, enjoyed being a part of the success of students. He was passionate about kids and football. The dedication was proposed by community members Nick Matthes and Pat Akerley and the whole community embraced the idea.
Referring to Coach Kocher, Rinehart said, “Knowing what he meant to this community, and what he did in Richmond, we are all proud to be a part of it.”
Reporting for WGRT – Jennie McClelland
