The J. A. Walters Family YMCA in Gainesville cut the ribbon Friday on its new Milton Martin Toyota Athletic Fields.
The fields will be used for a multitude of events, including soccer, field rentals and possibly adult sports leagues.
“We were able to build these fields, from gifts from a couple of generous donors, with Milton Martin being our lead donor,” Associate Executive Director of J. A. Walters Family YMCA Emily Young said. “We are so happy to have expanded our fields so we can serve more children. This fall, we are serving somewhere around 120 children, which is almost double what we've served in previous falls.”
The athletic fields will be used for the YMCA fall and spring youth soccer league, Young said.
Up to six youth soccer games will be able to fit on the Milton Martin Toyota sports fields.
The athletic fields are surrounded by a .35-mile concrete trail named the “Wendi and Frank Simpson Walking Trail.”
Former Georgia Governor Nathan Deal and Gainesville Mayor Sam Couvillon spoke at the ribbon-cutting, alongside Georgia Mountains YMCA President and CEO Lane Walberg.
“These fields are basically a classroom. And they are going to teach our youth for generations,” Walberg said. “1000s of families, 1000s of kids in our community are going to learn to live active lifestyles, they're going to learn sportsmanship, perseverance, character. This is part of a leadership development factory. They're going to learn how to be leaders, they're going to learn how to be part of a team. They're going to learn how to win, they're going to learn how to bounce back from failure.”
Young said the previous fields are about half the size of the Milton Martin Toyota Athletic Fields
