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I recently saw the closest thing to a “Field of Dreams” with the construction and dedication of the Dr. Kent W. Kurtz Memorial Stadium at Mt. San Antonio College. Local vendors donated the materials for students and faculty to build a miniaturized version of a major league baseball field. Actually the field is the perfect size for wiffle ball games and also training of field maintenance for the students of Mt. SAC.
Brian Scott, professor of horticulture at Mt. SAC served as the Master of Ceremonies for the dedication. He was also the driving influence behind having the field named for Dr. Kurtz. Brian was a former student of Dr. Kurtz and a longtime collaborator on sports turf education and training.
For those who may not know Dr. Kurtz he had a 35 year career as an educator at Cal Poly Pomona. Much of that education was in sports turf but he also graduated a few hundred golf turf managers as well. Quite a few of the current So Cal superintendents trained under Dr. Kurtz and he is well respected in both sports turf and golf.
Dr. Kurtz played a major role in the formation and infancy of the Sports Turf Managers Association. He became their executive director in 1984 and that group has grown to as many as 2,000 members today.
The memories of Dr. Kurtz will live on in the minds of many. A wonderful field will be enjoyed by all and it is now dedicated to one of the icons of the sports turf industry.