December 10, 2024
Eustis High Unveils State-of-the-Art Weightroom Following Community-Driven Renovation
By Kyle Coppola
Eustis High Unveils State-of-the-Art Weightroom Following Community-Driven Renovation
EUSTIS, Fla. — Eustis High School has completed construction on its brand-new weight room, a long-awaited upgrade made possible through community support and collaboration. The facility, renovated by so many, represents a significant improvement for the school’s athletic programs.
(The gym renovation took two weeks of work. A ton of volunteer hours went into this project.)
During construction, Nicole and Jonathan Calderon of Starr.Fit in Eustis generously provided access to their gym, ensuring Eustis athletes could continue training without interruption. The upgraded facility features a new weightroom floor provided by the Lake County School Board and cutting-edge equipment, replacing the previous gym, which had fallen into disrepair over the past decade. “We are so thankful for Starr.Fit and everything they provided. We also want to give a ton of credit to all the volunteers and community who helped out. We could not have done it without them.” says Eustis Athletic Director Matthew Burgess.
(The brand new gym features new floors and new upgraded equipment.)
The gym was put together over two weekends by Scott and Gregg Starr who are former Eustis High Panther athletes along with Nicole and Jonathan Calderon. Eustis Athletic Director Matthew Burgess along with head football coach Darnell Harrison helped on the weekends.
“Eustis High Principal Tracy Clark provided all the benches. Principal Clark has put in tireless efforts to get this project accomplished. He has wanted this for a while because of the benefits it provides for the student-athlets. It’s awesome to see his vision finally come to fruition.” says Burgess.
(Taken in August this year, this photo shows the state of the previous weight room equipment and why this project was badly needed.)
Roguefitness worked with Eustis High and provided them with excellent deals in getting the equipment. The old weightroom was demolished by custodian Robert Moton. New Lake County Director of Athletics Pat Todd and assistant superintendent of facilities Chad Farnsworth were the ones to make sure we got a brand new floor. Calvin Wingo and David Ramirez were the leads in installingthe weight room floor.” says Burgess. Also a big shoutout to former Eustis High Softball coach Brittany Beall who was instrumental in getting the weight room renovated. This is something she has wanted for years. Regardless of how the room looked and functioned, her girls always put in the work and became State Champions anyways.
(The new weight room has a new floor, all new equipment and will help student-athletes for years to come.)
Funding for the project was raised by the Eustis High School Boosters at the Panthers Pride in the Park event last year. The fundraiser, led by Cindy Lajuenesse, Willy Hawkins, Kaley Raley, and former Eustis Athletic Director Tom Kupec, brought together the Eustis community to support local athletics. Their next Panther Pride event is happening February 15th. If you want to buy tickets, reach out to Matthew Burgess the school AD, Cindy, Willie or Corey Van Dyke.
(Shoutout to everyone in the community who made this project happen. Look at the hard-work that went into this. The student-athletes very much appreciate it and will now get to use this space and be proud of it for years to come.)
This has been a much-needed project for years. On a personal note, I took a tour of the school in August and the previous weightlifting space was well past its expiration date, with benches and equipment showing their age. I can’t thank the community enough for making this happen. I am a huge supporter of all Lake & Sumter County programs and this is a blessing. These athletes deserve this and now they have a facility they can be proud of for years to come. I am so thankful for this community coming together and rallying to support this project.
The new weightroom will be utilized by the weightlifting teams and all student-athletes at Eustis High School, providing a modern and safe space to train and excel. This milestone marks a new chapter for the school’s athletic program, that continues to excite with what they are accomplishing. The softball team is coming off a State Championship, the basketball team is in good shape and 2025 should be an exciting year for Eustis High Athletics.
Photo Credit – Matthew Burgess
Kyle Coppola was born in Newton, Massachusetts and received his Bachelor of Fine Arts in Communications from Curry College in 2016. After traveling to Florida on a family vacation, he decided he could not get enough of the warm weather and made the move from snowy Massachusetts to central Florida 8 years ago.
For the last decade Kyle has gained valuable experience in social media content creation, marketing and sales, writing, video production, sports announcing and even broadcasting for local radio stations, such as FM 102.9 in The Villages and FM 91.5 in Massachusetts. Every year he volunteers at The Villages Charter High School as a play-by-play sports announcer for the football games as well as a public address announcer for the basketball games, including the annual Battle at The Villages Tournament.
Outside the office Kyle is a husband and father to two beautiful girls along with their cat. In his spare time he likes to spend time with his family, travel, play golf and swim. He is also a huge sports junkie and even bigger motorsports fan and loves to attend racing events when he can.
