Football for Doniphan Inc. outlines plans to jumpstart school football program

Football for Doniphan Inc. held its first board meeting last week, signaling a new beginning for a town trying to rejuvenate its football program after a more than 30-year absence.

Nine board members met Thursday and again Tuesday, outlining plans to get fundraising for a junior high program and new field and stadium off the ground.

"This is a new organization that is dedicated to bringing football back to a community that's wanted it for so long," board president Gary Pennington said. "It's been in the works for some time now, but to have us all meet for the first time, it feels like we're getting somewhere."

Subcommittees have been formed to lead the charge on funding for a stadium and the initial phase of starting a junior high program.

The committee for a new stadium has already nailed down three potential sites but is still open to entertaining others. Pennington said they are searching for 10 acres or so of flat land within three to four miles of the city limits of Doniphan.

"We have three current possible locations, and we are still looking for the perfect one because each one has its pros and cons," he said. "Right now there's one real close to the school, one just outside the city limits and another one four or five miles outside of it."

The majority of the funding will come from a program the committee has set up for the community to donate to a future stadium.

With the purchase of a memorial brick paver, people can have their name enshrined on the walkway leading up to the future stadium site.

"For anybody that's interested in helping get the program started, we have something that they can afford to buy that will stay at the stadium hopefully for a very, very long time," Pennington said.

The 4-by-8-inch bricks, which contain up to three lines and 16 characters per line, can be purchased through Doniphan for Football Inc. for $500. The total amount can be paid out over a four-year period or up front. The first payment of $125 will be made upon signing a commitment letter, followed by three more commitments of equal amounts annually.

Additionally, members of the community can purchase 12-by-12 or 12-by-24 brick pavers, benches, a Pillars of the Community gateway along with naming rights to the scoreboard and stadium. All levels of donation include a three-year payment plan.

The rest of the board is working on raising funds for equipment, a locker room and a weight room along with some other miscellaneous items, which would pave the way for the junior high program to begin.

"We talked about a lot of different ways to get the word out there. We talked about dinners and community meetings and stuff like that, and I think what we're focused on right now is a whole lot of face-to-face contact," Pennington said. "The board of directors, myself included, and several others are going to be going out and making a lot of face-to-face contacts."

An estimated $400,000 for the entire project needs to be met. In order to field a junior high team in the fall, which is the committee's main goal right now, the school board will need monetary proof of approximately $100,000 by the May 24 board meeting before it can hire a coach and begin the junior high program. Part of a donation can be made with an agreement to pay the rest over three years.

Pennington said the goal is attainable with the help of the Doniphan community.

"That's priority No. 1," Pennington said. "We've got a list of people, and we're going to go visit each one of them. With the support we've received already and additional help, we'll get there."

For more information on how to donate, get involved or refer a potential stadium site, contact Gary Pennington at (573) 300-9318, Barbie Rogers (573) 996-6737, vice president Jim Hunt (573) 996-2345 and Liesa Pennington (573) 996-3346.