The pictures of damage at Joplin High School don’t do justice.
“I’d seen pictures of an aerial view of the high school,” said JHS athletics director Jeff Starkweather, who drove past the building on Monday. “But when I got there, it’s even worse than you think.
“Words can’t describe it. It’s sickening, it really is ... all the people affected by this.”
Starkweather not only lost his work place, but also he is a graduate of the former Parkwood High.
“That place has been there for over 50 years,” he said. “It’s sad to see. Yes, it’s a building, but there are memories there as well. The main thing is the high school can be rebuilt, and the memories kept forever as well. We feel bad and sorry for those folks who lost their homes and loved ones. That’s what we feel the worst about.”
Damage at the high school wasn’t limited to the building. The baseball and softball fields suffered major damage.
“The scoreboards are gone,” Starkweather said. “The fences are gone, the dugouts are gone, the batting cages are gone. It just looks like an empty field with debris spread all over.
“It’s weird because in the nice grass on the baseball field for example, there are tons of spears of wood just sticking out of it. It’s scary.”
Across town, Junge Field had only minor damage.
“Some of the portable bleachers were thrown around a little bit and turned over,” Starkweather said. “Other than that, everything appears to be OK.”
Damage to equipment and uniforms has not been determined.
“A lot of the football equipment is stored at Junge, and Junge is OK,” Starkweather said. “A lot of the uniforms are stored at the high school, and we’ll have some equipment issues in every sport as well. We have a lot of storage area at the high school, and as soon as they let us go in and pull things out, we’ll know more then.”
Discussions about summer sports camps and venues for sporting events next school year have not begun yet, Starkweather said.
“Right now, we as a school district have a meeting every morning at North Middle School,” he said. “That’s our new command center as the administration building (on 15th Street) was hit as well.
“We have not talked about the future just yet. The main focus has been on making sure are kids are OK and our staff is OK. That’s what we’ve been focusing on right now. Soon our discussion will turn to the future and what we’re going to be doing. We’ll be talking about that pretty quick. We don’t have a lot of time before next school year.
“I’m getting information from other schools impacted in the past and what they’ve done. A lot of people have been reaching out. I’ve heard from every school and athletic director in the Ozark Conference, from schools and ADs and friends from outside the state of Missouri, from all over the state of Missouri, from the MSHSAA. They are sending well wishes, thoughts and prayers and saying whatever they can do to help, just let them know.
“It’s been humbling, quite honestly, to see that. People care, and that’s what’s great.”
Sports
Related Photos
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Tennis courts at Joplin High School are surrounded by debris after Sunday's tornado. Other facilities around the high school also were damaged.
Discussion
May 25, 2011
Tornado damages JHS fields
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Outlaws open season Thursday on the road
Chris Oldner takes a cut during the Joplin Outlaws practice Tuesday afternoon. The Outlaws open their season on Thursday night at Rossville and play seven road games before their home opener on June 5.
The Joplin Outlaws and new coach Rob Vessell have set some lofty goals for the 2012 baseball season.
Continued ... - Stanton’s homers fuel Marlins’ surge in May
- Five sign to join Missouri Southern women's track team
- Whisner ignites Joplin Miners past Webb City
- Venus Williams joins Serena on sideline in Paris
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- Pittsburg State Sports
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- Vengels sixth in heptathlon; PSU picks up two seventh-place finishes
- Ethan Cordray signs with Pittsburg State
- Lions, Gorillas begin competition in outdoor track and field championship
- Three finalists named for PSU head baseball coach position
- Lions qualify 10, PSU 15 for Division II outdoor track meet
- Missouri Southern Sports
- High School Sports
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Area athletes turn shine at state meet
Webb City's Jarvis Jones takes sixth in the 200.
- Cleo Elbert steps down at Thomas Jefferson
- Frontenac wins first state baseball title
- Joplin's Jeremy Lynn takes fifth at state tennis
- Frontenac advances at state baseball
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