ER Alumni and Supporters Association Laying Plans for 2016

The East Ridge Alumni and Supporters Association had its monthly meeting Monday night in the East Ridge High School library.

Those in attendance heard from special speaker Josh Goldman, an official with PlayCore. PlayCore is a manufacturer of outdoor equipment, including site amenities for sports stadiums. Goldman provided a presentation regarding stadium seating, press boxes, field houses, locker rooms, restrooms and concession stands. It was noted in the meeting that PlayCore is a good resource for information concerning these buildings and other structures.

The ER Alumni and Supporters Association was formed after the city condemned the home stands at Raymond James Stadium back in August. Initially the group’s aim was to help raise money to build new home stands at the school’s stadium. It has since evolved into much more.

During Monday’s meeting, Bill Shipley outlined new additions to the organization’s website. Those additions include an option for paying for membership into the group online, a mission statement and photo galleries.

There was a detailed description of goals and objectives for the group in 2016. Those goals include ways to connect with the community, increasing awareness of the alumni association, raising funds to assist the football stadium project with locker rooms, restrooms and concession stands, and partnering with booster clubs and the PTA.

The East Ridge Alumni and Supporters Association intends to form committees next year which will include committees for membership, major donor, communications and social media, events and school and community liaison.

The next meeting of the East Ridge Alumni and Supporters Association is scheduled for Jan. 11, 2016 at the East Ridge High School library. The meeting is slated for 7 p.m.

About Dick Cook

Dick Cook has lived in East Ridge since the Kennedy Administration when his parents bought a house on Marietta Street. Dick graduated from ERHS in 1976 before going on to the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga where he studied Political Science. Dick worked for the Chattanooga Free-Press and the Chattanooga Times Free Press for 22 years. Free-Press Sports Editor Roy Exum plucked him out of production in 1989 and gave him a job as a sports reporter. Dick covered everything from prep sports to the whitewater events on the Ocoee River for the 1996 Olympics. When Chattanooga's two paper's merged, he became the Crime Reporter covering both the Chattanooga Police and Fire Departments. He was among reporters who were honored by the Associated Press for the TFP's coverage of the 2002 fog-shrouded crash on I-75 in Catoosa County, Dick and his wife, Cathy, live on Marlboro Avenue where they are seen frequently chasing around their three grandsons.