Relay For Life will return to Central Park for 2018, and organizers hope to incorporate a car show with it.

Brian Spangle, a representative of Relay For Life, said the event will be June 9 and requested approval from the Warsaw Parks and Recreation board to reserve space for a car show.

The Relay will use both of the Central Park shelters as well as the Center Lake Pavilion.

“It is the biggest local fundraiser that the Cancer Society has. All the funds that are generated through the Relay For Life stay here in the county. So that’s important to know that everything we do locally is for Kosciusko County citizens. That allows the American Cancer Society to keep all that national money in research,” Spangle said.



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He said the event generates teams and sponsorships that go toward the funding. It’s a 12-hour walk from noon to midnight, and the sidewalk around Central Park will be used for the walking path.

“We are in the process trying to secure a car show because obviously the more people that we get to come to the park on this day, the more funds that we can raise because there will be donation buckets out there. Each team will have their opportunities for people to donate to, and car shows just bring in bodies,” Spangle continued.

He said they would like to use the west parking lot for a car show and asked the board for permission to do that.

Events are planned throughout the day at the Relay. The pavilion will be used for a silent auction.

“It used to be out at the fairgrounds for years. We feel that the park is a higher visibility spot. And the main reason for that is, a.) It’s a beautiful park; and b.) the amazement at the number of people in the county that don’t realize what the Relay For Life is, when it is and (how) it benefits the community,” Spangle said.

Wendy Mang, community development manager with the American Cancer Society, said there also will be a survivor dinner at the Relay. “We welcome all cancer survivors and their caregivers to come and be celebrated at the event,” she said, adding the dinner will be in the pavilion.

Board Vice President Larry Ladd asked if there was anything else scheduled at the park that day. Recreation Director Sheila Wieringa said she does have a tentative movie night scheduled for the Municipal Park at Center Lake at about 7:30 that night, but she didn’t know why they can’t work in tangent.

Board President Steve Haines expressed concern about whether there would be enough parking.

Superintendent Larry Plummer said that while Relay would use parking lots adjacent to the two shelters, those attending movie night would use parking near the beach. Spangle said he hoped there would be so many people attending that there would be a parking issue.

Ladd made a motion to allow Relay For Life to have the rights that day to one of the parking areas, whichever Plummer decided was the best for the car show. The motion was unanimously approved.

Hire Park Building

In another matter, Plummer said Lake City BMX recently completed its new building construction at Hire Park.

Track Operator Dan Rumple began by thanking the board for supporting the BMX track over the years.

He presented the board with a paper that handed over the new building at Hire to the Parks Department.

Rumple read the paper, which states, “BMX Inc., operating as Hire Park, 750 E. Arthur St., has constructed a new permanent building to house registration, concessions and storage. The construction of the building has been completed and paid in full. It passed all inspections on Oct. 26, 2017. Lake City BMX would like to transfer ownership of the permanent building to Warsaw Parks Department, with Lake City BMX Inc. occupying the building. Upon the dissolve of Lake City BMX, the Warsaw Parks would have full possession and ability to occupy the building.”

Plummer said this was similar to what the board has done in the past with the Young Tiger Football facility at Richardson-Dubois Park.

“Dan thanks us, but I’ve really got to thank him and his crew down there. They provide something to our community that we don’t have. A lot of communities this size just don’t have great events for bikes like that. They’ve had national meets there, they’ve had state meets there. It’s a great draw and it’s a good thing for kids to get involved with,” Plummer said.

Over the last three years, Rumple said Lake City BMX invested over $200,000 in the track – a brand new design, state-of-the-art gate system, a 5-meter hill and the building.

“Next year, we did receive a Gold Cup Qualifier, which is one of the big races. We’re still working on getting the date for that. We have another state qualifier. We’ve been working with other tracks around the state to try to generate new ridership, more people coming to Warsaw, so that all continues to grow every year,” Rumple said.

Anyone interested in getting involved in BMX racing, Rumple said, should come down to Hire Park, which is open Tuesdays and Thursdays from 5 to 8 p.m. through the summer, and on Saturdays for racing.

Rumple said the track is sanctioned through USA BMX, and membership is required to participate in races. There is a temporary membership if a person wants to try it first.

For those who want to try it, he said, “We’ve got helmets. We need new helmets, we’re working on that over the winter. And we’ve got bikes, all sizes.”

He said the track’s youngest rider is 2 years old, and Kittie Weston-Knauer came through Warsaw this summer. Weston-Knauer at 69 is the oldest female BMX racer in the country, possibly the world.

In the future, Rumple said they’d like to asphalt the parking lot, install permanent bathrooms and add new fencing around the racing surface.

“Things that aren’t necessarily directly related to the race itself, but just for the curb appeal to hopefully get the (USA BMX) to give us nationals again,” Rumple said.

Plummer said the building was a good first step. The Park Board unanimously accepted the building.

No December Meeting

Since a lack of business is expected in December, Plummer indicated there won’t be a board meeting next month. However, he suggested the board elect 2018 officers so it would be ready to go in January.

Haines and Ladd were re-elected president and vice president respectively.