At 95 years young, you may not expect such a person to not only be active but to want to have a field for young ladies to enjoy for many years into the future. Virginia “Ginny” Iler Paulus was the first one at the field on Saturday, August 15, just north of the Paulding Football field complex, even using he same parking lot.
Virginia Iler greeted everyone warmly as they came out to the beautiful morning on the north side of the athletic complex. The new field construction has been underway after the PEVS school board accepted the generous donation on behalf of the Iler family by Ginny.
The morning was opened up Kenneth Amstutz, PEVS Superintendent, and he spoke of the school starting and students finally coming back to school after the COVID crisis, construction project and the benefits to the students. He thanked Virginia for her willingness to invest in the future of the community.
Brian Gorrell mentioned how this came about and the land that was already placed. Following Brian was Mike Iler (Past Time Cafe and great nephew of Ginny). He spoke passionately of his memories which lead to the future of the young people who play softball. Even though Mike seems to be at odds with timeliness of his aunt, his dedication to the young ladies and their sports, is right on par.
Virginia spoke next of how she raised her children and still played games in the evenings. She misses the days of the competitive competition that our local area had for the young adults in the softball. She mentioned how her batting average was around .500, not because she played harder, but played smarter. If the time would call for it, she could bunt like a pro!
The new Iler Softball Field should be completed by the end of September if all goes as planned.
