43
New tennis court, amphitheater dedicated in Beaver Township park
NORTH LIMA
“This is one of the most beautiful things they ever did here,” Bill and Judy Pontuti of Beaver Township said of the new stage in Woodworth Park that was dedicated Wednesday evening with a ribbon cutting and musically christened by the Mule Face Brothers country trio.
“They have a wonderful thing here,” said Lorrie Lesnansky of Youngstown, who brought her mother, Dorothy Monaco of Boardman, and Youngstowners Frank and Julie McLennan, formerly of Beaver Township, to enjoy the outdoor concert.
The Pontutis and the Lesnansky party were among about 150 people who took advantage of a warm evening to bring their lawn chairs or to sit on benches to listen to the concert.
The new brick and concrete stage and a new tennis court adjacent to the stage and other improvements to the park were made possible by a $500,000 gift to the parks by a township resident who wishes to remain anonymous, said Scott Conway, township park administrator.
Woodworth Park is at 255 Warren Ave. off Western Reserve Road between Market Street and Southern Boulevard.
The anonymous donor has been around Woodworth Park all his life and financed the new tennis court, which was finished in early spring, because he loved to play tennis. Work on the new amphitheater, which is 40 feet wide by 24 feet deep, began in October 2016 and cost about $146,000, Conway said.
“We are very blessed in the township, whether businesses making the Wednesday concerts possible or other residents stepping up. It’s a great community that supports us every time we need something. It’s really neat,” Conway said.
Township Trustee Ted Lyda thanked Conway and his advisory group for their hard work in bringing the tennis court and stage projects to fruition.
“We’re going to continue on,” Lyda said. His fellow trustees are Ron Kappler and Larry Wehr.
Bill and Darlene Disotell of Boardman said they usually come to Woodworth on Wednesday evenings for the country-western and polka groups.
The concert was a true family affair.
While parents and grandparents listened and sang and clapped along to the music, which included Mule Face Brothers’ renditions of “Maybellene,” a Chuck Berry tune, and Johnny Cash’s “Folsom Prison Blues,” several children eagerly tried to catch bubbles spewed out by a machine on the stage. Others used playground equipment or just ran around.
Woodworth Park activities bring people together and help create community, said the Rev. Gary Mariano of The Gate Church in North Lima, in a prayer during the dedication ceremony.