Celebrating the Cleveland Browns commitment to education and youth and high school football, the team hosted a special field dedication ceremony today at Berea City School District's Lou Groza Field. The field features ForeverLawn high-quality turf and marks the 14th field surface installed in Ohio schools and communities by the Browns, courtesy of the Haslam and Johnson families and Browns Give Back, since the team's long-term field initiative launched seven years ago in May 2016.
"We are thrilled to have officially broken ground on the state-of-the-art synthetic turf field from ForeverLawn at Berea City School District's Lou Groza Field," said Vice President of Community Relations Jenner Tekancic. "This project represents our commitment to providing top-notch facilities for our community, fostering athletic excellence, and creating valuable opportunities for our youth. The new field will not only enhance the playing experience but also serve as a catalyst for the overall development and growth of our students, athletes, and the entire Berea community. We extend our heartfelt gratitude to the Berea City School District for their partnership, and we eagerly anticipate the lasting positive impact this facility will bring to our community in the years ahead."
The Browns have partnered with Berea City School District and other local groups who use Lou Groza Field for community engagement opportunities for many years, including the Browns Adapted Football League with Achievement Centers for Children. To expand the partnership, Berea City School District officially joined the Stay in the Game! Network for the upcoming school year (2023-24). Additionally, the Lou Groza Titans Youth Football program has received equipment donations from the Browns, highlighted by a contribution through the HELMETS program this past December during Browns Give Back's "10 Days of Giving" that provided $25,000 of new five-star helmets to the organization.
"The transformation of Lou Groza field is truly remarkable, and the Berea City School District extends our sincere appreciation to all involved in making this project a reality," said Superintendent of Berea School District Tracy Wheeler. "This first-class field will create memorable moments for our students and our community."
Recently joining forces with the Cleveland Browns as their Official Synthetic Turf Partner, ForeverLawn emerges as a leading provider of premium synthetic turf, headquartered in Louisville, Ohio. The high-performance synthetic turf from its SportsGrass line of products have been installed at the Lou Groza Field renovation, as well as future sites selected by Browns Give Back.
All of the new fields created through the program are lined for multiple sports, including but not limited to football and soccer, and serve as a resource to further engage athletes and students in their respective districts and programs. Given the stability of the surface and less maintenance needed compared to natural grass, the fields are also more readily available year-round to youth and community groups.
A primary focus of the Browns' field project is to offer youth educational tools through "outdoor classrooms," which offer opportunities to participate in extracurricular activities that support attendance, school engagement and overall personal growth.
Haslam and Johnson families and Browns Give Back field project summary:
- Roye Kidd Field (Cleveland Metropolitan School District, 2016)
- James F. Rhodes Field (Cleveland Metropolitan School District, 2016)
- Bump Taylor Field (Cleveland Metropolitan School District, 2016)
- John Adams Field (Cleveland Metropolitan School District, 2017)
- John Marshall Field (Cleveland Metropolitan School District, 2017)
- Roy C. Start High School (Toledo Public Schools, 2018)
- George Daniel Field (Lorain City Schools, 2018)
- Boys and Girls Hope of Northeast Ohio (2019)
- Ellet High School (Akron Public Schools, 2019)
- Shaw High School (East Cleveland City School District, 2021)
- Archbishop Hoban High School (2021)
- Buchtel Stadium (Akron Public Schools, 2022)
- Vitamix Field at Charles Harding Memorial Stadium (Olmsted Falls City Schools, 2022)
- Lou Groza Field (Berea City School District, 2023)
About the Cleveland Browns and Browns Give Back:
The Browns Give Back to Northeast Ohio with a commitment to education and youth football while engaging the community through the team's signature First and Ten volunteer movement. For more information, visit www.clevelandbrowns.com/brownsgiveback.
Education – The Cleveland Browns are dedicated to improving the quality of education for students in Ohio by making investments that keep kids in school every day so they can succeed, highlighted by the Stay in the Game! Keep Learning, Every Day Network. The Stay in the Game! Network is a statewide initiative designed to increase school attendance through a partnership between the Cleveland Browns Foundation, Columbus Crew Foundation, Ohio Department of Education and Harvard University's Proving Ground. The team engages local school districts and promotes quality education by using attendance data and feedback from families to build a school-going culture, uncover and reduce common barriers to attendance and support engagement opportunities for students to thrive. In the 2023-24 school year, the Stay in the Game! Network will partner with 34 school districts, benefitting nearly 200,000 students in Ohio. To learn more visit, visit StayinTheGame.org.
Youth Football – The Cleveland Browns are committed to assisting the development, safety and growth of youth and high school football throughout Northeast Ohio with year-round programming for players, coaches, officials and parents. Through camps, clinics and other initiatives, the Browns' goal is to promote healthy, social, emotional, intellectual and physical development of youth by enhancing opportunities for youth football participation and education.
First and Ten – Launched in June 2014, the Cleveland Browns First and Ten campaign is the team's community program, established to inspire fans to #give10 and help their communities by volunteering for 10 hours each year. Through First and Ten, the Browns are the only NFL club to promote a long-term volunteering program that unifies the team and its entire fan base, with the goal of impacting every individual's city across the globe, as well as the franchise's local community. To date, more than 2.75 million hours of volunteering have been pledged through First and Ten. All Browns fans are encouraged to join the volunteering effort by signing the First and Ten pledge on the team's website and by sharing their stories with #give10.
About ForeverLawn:
ForeverLawn® improves spaces and communities through innovative synthetic grass solutions. Beginning in 2004 as the daring entrepreneurial venture of two brothers, ForeverLawn has consistently led the synthetic turf industry through groundbreaking approaches to products and practice. As the premium choice for synthetic surfacing, each product is engineered to solve unique consumer needs and desires while maintaining superior standards and natural aesthetics. Today the company services over 90 localized markets through their dealer network with an impressive regional, national and international project portfolio. To learn more about the ForeverLawn family of products and how to be a person of impact through business ownership opportunities, visit foreverlawn.com.
