School Board rejects naming soccer field for Colin Powers

At the Feb. 26 meeting, the Cascade School Board considered a request by Kevin Powers to name the school soccer field for his late brother, Colin, who was the high school coach for six years. At a previous meeting, the board citied policy prohibiting the naming of buildings or fields after local people.
Instead, the board prefers placing locals on a legacy wall in Peshastin, which currently only includes the late Louie Wagoner. Powers spoke to the council to press his case. He said many people have been asking him about this.
“I would like to put in my two cents worth in terms of recognition. Certainly being put on a memorial with Louie is rarified air. My only concern with that is it is in Peshastin. The soccer pitch is up here. People that come to watch soccer don’t go to Peshastin,” Powers said.
The concern on his part, Powers said, was to memorialize what Colin meant to the community and the school district.
“I don’t know if you are aware, an overwhelming majority of his adult life was dedicated to soccer in one capacity or another,” Powers said. “Soccer was not a sport offered at Cascade prior to his being involved in the community and developing the Leavenworth Soccer Club. His legacy goes far beyond just the coach at the high school. He really was soccer in the upper valley.”
Powers said anything the board could do to honor Colin’s legacy would greatly be appreciated. Naming the field after him would be his preference and that of other people, but he didn’t know if that was a consideration given the policy.
“I would appreciate any efforts it would take to do that to memorialize what he brought to this community,” Powers said. “If there is a way to get the pitch named in his honor, that would be my number one preference. Second preference would be having something here, rather than have something in Peshastin. It just doesn’t seem to connect for me in any way, shape or form.”
Board member Carrie Sorensen said with their policy and procedure, the idea is for the legacy wall, where Louie is first, but that has not been laid out yet.
“We’re trying to decide how to acknowledge all the many people in our community we would love to name so many things after, where and how to best do that. We’re still kind of working through all that,” said Board member Kristen Wood, who is Louie Wagoner’s daughter. “People were wanting to name the football field after Louie Wagoner. Of course, that would be great. It’s just something we need to really consider how we’re going to start naming things, especially in our new buildings.”
Board member Trey Ising continued to press for improvements on the legacy wall.
“The legacy thing is the same thing as far as, it’s down there and some people do things that aren’t connected to down there. Whether there is a way to make that more prominent and stand out more, so when it’s graduation or other things, it’s there,” Ising said. “Make it a unique and special thing where a ceremony could be done at the pitch, but the plaque is placed down there.”
Powers said he’s never seen the legacy wall, despite having attended numerous football games.
“It’s not really well developed or established yet. We kind of quickly put that together because we needed to,” Wood said.
Ising said they want to build upon the foundation and make it something as a place of honor, no matter where it will end up. He wants it to be a place of honor for anybody that has given service to the community and school district.
“It’s not about just putting something on a wall. It has to be done meaningful and makes a statement, especially to all the kids who have been coached. It’s an ultimate meaning of respect and needs to meet those qualifications,” Ising said. “We have one person on it now. We’re in the process of making it something where it is an honorable as it can be.”
It’s not anything special right now, but Wood said they are working on it. Ising suggested Powers look at the Wagoner plaque.
“We either want have a place where they all look like that  and are all together. We want to make sure we’re placing them in a place of honor,” Ising said.
Community member Kathryn Praye urged the board to keep track of those things.
“My dad had a plaque on the wall of the old basketball gym. When they did the remodel, who knows where that went,” Praye said.
“That’s one thing I want to put, as we revise our legacy wall, there has to be something in there that it will carry through, no matter what happens to the district in the future,” Ising said.
Powers said he is more than willing to put together some thoughts and bring it back to the board.
“It will also give me the opportunity to follow up with these other people. I’ve had kids that played for him. He went above and beyond with kids that weren’t going to college,” Powers said. “Hook them up with coaches and colleges and universities. There are so many of those stories. This will give me to opportunity to talk to some of those people. We have a teacher at the high school that played for him.”
Ian Dunn can be reached at 548-5286 or editor@leavenworthecho.com.