Label
PYS Dedication of Accessible Soccer Courts at Schneider Park
Parks and Youth Services
Joe Fausnaugh (3884)
Title
Memorializing the life of Jason C. Thomas and naming the Dual Mini-Pitches at Schneider Park the "Jason C. Thomas Memorial Pitches."
Body
SUMMARY & BACKGROUND:
WHEREAS, Jason Thomas, husband to Sally Gladwell for 25 years and father to Henry (Hank) Gladwell Thomas, Samuel Gladwell Thomas, and Eleanor Gladwell Thomas, was a long-term resident of Toledo who was born in Toledo on June 10, 1971 to and died unexpectedly on August 5, 2019;
WHEREAS, Jason was a lifelong soccer enthusiast, first playing soccer with Sally in sixth grade on a team coached by Jason's dad, Philip Thomas. Jason was a multi-sport athlete but favored soccer and became a devoted soccer dad, watching his three children play from the time each of them was four-years-old. Most of their years spent playing soccer were at Toledo's Schneider Fields. Among the families using Schneider Park, Jason earned the title of "World's Greatest Soccer Dad" for his steadfast loyalty to the athletes and coaches and families;
WHEREAS, Jason was a fixture in the local Toledo community as an advocate for youth. He was a committed and inspiring teacher, having taught at his alma mater, St. Francis de Sales High School, and later at West Side Montessori, Toledo School for the Arts, and Maumee Valley Country Day School. Following Jason's death, Maumee Valley Country Day School's soccer teams permanently adapted their jerseys to include a patch emblazed with Jason's initials, "JT" to memorialize the impact he had on the soccer players and the soccer program;
WHEREAS, as the idea for the Schneider Park Revitalization Project, resulting in an expanded and enhanced park - the only public space in Toledo dedicated to soccer - was solely inspired by the memory of Jason several months after his tragic death. Jason was a man for the community who understood the importance of providing safe ...
Click here for full text