By J.L. MILLER
Dover Bureau reporter
09/23/2002

Ronald F. Powell had a dream that one day, members of his Smyrna High School cross country team might have a course to call their own.

Powell died unexpectedly last year, his vision unfulfilled.

But today, thanks to a group of volunteers, Powell's dream will become a reality at a place where dreams have been nurtured for more than 100 years.

At 4 p.m., the Smyrna team will hold its first home event at its new course on the grounds of St. Joseph's at Providence Creek in nearby Clayton.

And just before the race starts, the course will be dedicated in Powell's honor.

For years, Smyrna's cross country team had to practice wherever there was room - including at Blackbird State Forest, which was not the safest place for team members during hunting season.

About two years ago, Powell got permission from St. Joseph's at Providence Creek to clear undergrowth from the rear of the property for a cross country course and nature trail.

The sprawling Clayton facility was the home of St. Joseph's Industrial School, a Catholic-run school that opened in 1896 and provided a quality secondary education to poor black boys who might otherwise have gone unschooled.

The school closed in 1972 and sat shuttered for 25 years - when another group of people with a dream founded the St. Joseph's Project Foundation and acquired the property.

St. Joseph's now is home to a charter school and a wide range of community activities, and a cross country course fits right in with the foundation's desire to open the property to public use.

Groome Mears III, who lives near St. Joseph's, soon found himself volunteering for the cross country project.

"I've seen where the St. Joseph's school has gone from a nonuse facility to where volunteer groups have come in and straightened things up, and this is just an opportunity for me to volunteer time to a worthy cause," Mears said.

Mears said he remembered watching Powell, equipped with a tractor and chain saw, laying the groundwork for the course.

Powell, himself a 1964 Smyrna High graduate, had taught for 12 years and coached baseball, basketball, track and cross country until his death June 18, 2001.

Chuck Taylor, buildings and grounds director at St. Joseph's, and other volunteers picked up where Powell left off.

In July, Taylor coordinated a cleanup and barbecue where friends, athletes and parents completed the course that Powell had begun.

"Myself and some other volunteers went out and cleared the rest of the course, cut the underbrush, cut trees and logs and brought it back to a nature trail, a natural area," Taylor said.

"It's unspoiled. There's all sorts of wildlife out there," he said, adding that St. Joseph's prohibits hunting on the property.

Michael Kennedy was hired as Smyrna's cross country coach this year, which was when he learned that the team practiced in the state forest.

"That blew my mind when I heard that," Kennedy said. "I said, 'Don't they hunt there?' I was told, 'You really don't want to go there on certain days because you might get shot at.' "

Kennedy also learned that his first job was to pick out a starting line that could accommodate up to 100 runners, and lay out the new course from there.

"I had to read the rule book, I got a rolling wheel that clicks off the yards and I rolled it until the wheel fell off," Kennedy said.

Once he had it down to precisely 3.1 miles, he ran the course himself to see if he liked it. He also had the students give him their feedback.

"I feel the emotion, and I've only been affiliated with the program and even with the kids since mid-August," Kennedy said.

"Monday afternoon is going to come and there's going to be kids running on coach Powell's vision," he said. "I feel privileged to be a part of it, however small."

Reach J.L. Miller at 678-4271 or jlmiller@delawareonline.com.

Special to The News Journal/LINDA LAIRD

Smyrna High School runners (from left) John Worrall, Kerry Wilson, Joe Morman, Chris Mood, Ben Taylor and Seth Milligan (partly hidden) try the cross country course at St. Joseph's at Providence Creek in Clayton.

 

Smyrna High School runners (from left) Jessica Farrow, Andrea Wilson, Ashley Mazujuan and Rachel Hudson warm up.