By JESSICA HARDING
Staff Writer
HAZLET — Project EverGreen, a nonprofit organization, has launched its Healthy Turf Healthy Kids initiative in order to benefit members of the community.
The initiative has been underway since Oct. 28 at Steven Patterson Memorial Field.
The field in Hazlet was re-opened in 2016 for the first time in 10 years, but extremely hot weather during summer mixed with periods of rainfall left the field dead and messy.
With the help of LidoChem Inc. and Natural Green Lawn Care, $20,000 in supplies and labor have been donated to improve the 100,000 square feet of playing surfaces. Project EverGreen has donated landscaping renovation to restore and embellish the distressed turf field of the Hazlet Youth Athletic League.
These three companies, along with assistance from the community and Township Committee members, are in the process of reshaping, fertilizing and seeding the field to not only create a safe green space, but a healthy one as well.
The new field will provide players, cheerleaders and their families the opportunity to play and watch on sustainable land.
Don Pucillo, president of LidoChem Inc., understands the importance of a renovated field, as he recalled his childhood.
“I remember playing ball as a kid in Brooklyn, New York, on fields that had more rocks and pebbles than blades of grass,” he said. “I know I would have loved to play ball on a good field. We hope this new field gives them a sense of pride.”
LidoChem Inc. and Natural Green Lawn Care are working together to not only provide turf grass seed mix and organic Nutrismart-B soil, but to apply the products using labor, materials and donated time.
Cindy Code, executive director of Project EverGreen, explained how this project started on this particular field.
“Project EverGreen received a donation from Performance Nutrition, a division of LidoChem Inc., based in Hazlet,” she said. “We worked with Hazlet Township Parks and Public Works departments to identify a field meeting a need-based criteria. From there, we recruited area volunteers to participate in the project, and it came together nicely.”
Benefits of the improved field will include those that contribute to a healthy lifestyle. The lawn sports field will be 30 degrees cooler than asphalt, improve safety, create close-knit relationships within the community, minimize sports injuries and bugs, and overall increase physical activity.
Creating a healthier earth is the overall focus of this movement. LidoChem Inc. Safety Code Coordinator Mary Pomarico is impressed with the choice of healthier materials for the renovation.
“As the company’s Safety Code Coordinator, I was glad to see that Hazlet chose to use real turf and organic fertilizers, which will have a positive impact on the environment for years to come and to make this commitment of the health of their children through their sports programs.”
The field is expected to be ready for playing by next spring.
To learn more, visit www.ProjectEverGreen.com.