The Keokuk Chiefs baseball and softball park, Joyce Park, now has a victory bell thanks to a group effort that included help from Keokuk High School welding students with the project spearheaded by the Keokuk School Board President Clint Wray.
The new victory bell is in addition to the bell in front of the high school and will be utilized to help celebrate baseball and softball wins, while also showcasing the talents of the welding students.
Wray was made aware of the abandoned bell, which likely would have been scrapped, as it was badly tarnished with the original ornate frame in disrepair and inoperable. He then shared his plan to save and repurpose the bell with Keokuk Superintendent Dr. Kathy Dinger, KHS Principal Nathan Harrison, and Activity Director Zach Summers and they all agreed it would be a welcomed addition to the ball field.
Once Katie Geltz, KHS welding instructor, was brought in, her students utilized the KHS welding shop’s CNC plasma cutter to customize baseball and softball designs for the sides of the newly fabricated frame. Once the frame was complete and the bell was cleaned up, Dave Grogan planned with Bryan Kies, Kevin Andrew and Jade Haskins from the KCSD Transportation/Grounds department to prep the ground for concrete to install the new bell. Keokuk Ideal Ready Mix Manager, Bill Cleesen, donated the concrete for the pad and Manic Illusions Customz coated the new bell frame in Keokuk Chief purple powder coat, which was funded by the Keokuk Athletic Boosters.
The students and everyone involved “knocked the project out of the park.” Wray said.
Official approval for placement was granted by the Joyce Commission and approved by the City of Keokuk.
