Crappy High School Weight Room Gets Extreme Makeover | Park High School

Mr.. Mogan did, you have delights for me please. Thank. You okay. So, this. Video is gonna explain a little bit about why we're here and then we're gonna ask for a little bit of support from. You so, we have our friends from the lipslide foundation, here, that's, who you see around filming, last. Last, year we, submitted, our entry, into, a contest, that we could get our weight room completely, renovated, and so, this video will kind of go into our, submission, video a little bit and what this project is all about so, here. We go. Local, our high school is a live flight team here Dillon, Michaela, Kerby engine the, lift Life Foundation is, a non-profit organization. Powered, by bodybuilding.com. Our mission, is a travel, around the country identified. Old and outdated wait rooms and completely transform, them into state-of-the-art training facilities, over, a year ago your athletic director Regina wood nominated, Park High School for. A lift life renovation, after reviewing your video submission, we are excited to announce that, we have selected you as a semi-finalists. For our next project we. Sent our film crews to each of the final schools to have them show us why they deserve the top spot all. Right Park High it's your time to shine next, you'll see a short clip of your video submission. Okay. We're outside of Park, High School you're, getting ready to go in they're having their pep assembly right, now they, have no idea that we are here and so, we're gonna go in and Surprise them and let, them know that they have been chosen for the next renovation so. Here. We go we'll figure it out. Stay. Tuned. My. Name is Regina wood I'm the activities, director here in Livingston. Montana our school was completely, renovated in 2012, even, in the time of economic downturn our, community, passed a bond for 15 million dollars to update our school with brand new technology equipment. State-of-the-art. Everything the, only place that was untouched unfortunately, was our weight room so it's still the exact same as it was in 1998. This, leg press machine sticks. When you get. Then. Our bike is, missing pedals as. You can see definitely. Fennec, we updated the weight-room we can get money from in it so we could like kind, of promote working, out. So. What do you think Parker we are one of four schools in the nation being considered, for this project right now. Leader. Up something. We. Could not miss the opportunity to come meet, you guys in person see. You know just kind of what your school is about as. You saw we are the lift life team. Is. Anybody doesn't, know this is my older sister snow. Real. Happy to be here. So. Anyway. The. Real reason we wanted to come out was to. Announce that, you. Guys are not a semi-finalists. But. We have decided to pick Park High School as our, next look. I. Need. Every, single one of you stand up. It's. Been a bit such a whirlwind like I'm, still in a little bit of shock it was it was a very cool surprise I'm very impressive everybody pulled it off but it. Just makes me so humbled and so excited, for our kids and you know I've had teachers stopping, in all day as they've been able to catch me and just, saying how excited there and then just how, excited the kids are which for, me is even better you, know I I knew that I would be excited about it but to hear that they just can't stop talking about it it was really cool Regina, wood is the athletic director, here at Park High and she's, actually my sister we talked a little bit about you know would they be a candidate, for something like this I mean they're in rural community, you know and for me I was like I feel like you should absolutely you. Know nominate, your school the. Submitted video go through the whole process I can't make the decision you, know I'm part, of it but ultimately it's. Gonna come down to you. Know everybody else on the team our board members that kind of stuff we could really get a sense that they. Needed and wanted, this weight room and that it would impact. So. Many different. Layers throughout, the school and the community, so. Livingston, is kind of an interesting place, so. It's, a railroad town as I'm sure you've discovered, and, working. For the railroad you made more than you did in a lot of professional, jobs, then.

In. 1985. The, railroad, pulled, out so. Now here, we are two. Generations, later it's, it's quite a mix in this community, you, have very. Wealthy people here, but. 50%. Of our students, qualify. For free and reduced lunch, that, means your one or two paychecks away, from poverty, away. From maybe losing your house or not, being able to pay the rent. The, timing, of you all doing this there's no way you're gonna understand what you've done for the school especially, with everything that we have planned with, our community, and with, our school and and. Where this is going to take off you know we do, have a an, extreme, population, of poverty and, we. Have people that don't have resources. That, that everyone, thinks are available to everyone and it's, not just health care it's even just the wherewithal, to know where to get help and how to get help, we. Talked, about it we had a whole day of suicide, prevention and, a, few, months, ago you, know and it just looked at all the different factors, that that. Would make Park County the, number-one rate. Of suicide County in the in the state the. Cause of. Suicide. Is complex. What. I see. Though is. Issues. Connected, with. Generational. Poverty. Smoking. And drinking and. Drug. Abuse and. Struggles. With mental illness. We're. Working on a lot of trauma-informed, practices. And so. Working with kids with chronic trauma and, poverty. So. We have started, a district-wide, as and involved, our community, to make a community-wide. We're, actually starting the movements go live well 49, we. Do in. Montana. Have the highest suicide, rate, in the nation access. To mental health care is. Difficult. So. Building. Stronger. Supports. And. Connection. Is you. Know one way to try. To change, that and at least make sure that people are connected to each other it's, pretty special that we, were chosen and, someone, saw that in this, community and wanted to give that gift that's pretty amazing. So. Part, of why I, think, this project ties. Nicely. Into, the needs of, the community, is over time, that. Physical, strength it. Transfers, to your mental, strength and, I think that's where this is going to help so much is that you know it hopefully. Will be a place that kids want to be and they want to be in there more and more and. Not just because they're in a sport but because, you know they're concerned about their overall health and it's a place that they know they can go and be safe and have fun and, get better and you. Know that would be the, ideal. Big picture goal I think for for everyone in the school so. When we came through the weight room for our first initial, tour seen. The space for the first time was really cool it, actually this particular one is a lot smaller than, we initially, thought and. What was kind of perceived through the video I think that you know in smaller schools and schools, in general you you make do with what you have you know and we do we have a lot of people in this community that are willing to step up and and always.

Wanting To help out the school so a lot of the equipments donated, a lot of the upholstery, was you, know I know someone that can do that and so you know we we pieced that together and I think no, matter what you have we're, trying to instill in the kids a sense of pride and a sense of discipline in a sense of you, know taking care of things and leaving things better than you found them and. And making, that you know if you're gonna do those little things then hopefully those bigger things get done as well we're, making the best with what we have but we. Only have three platforms most. Of our bars are not Olympic, bars a lot, of them are bent just. Starting to rust and their platforms, were handmade somebody, took, some rubber mats and kind of tried to glue them to laminate, flooring the entire school was the, inside, was completely done that new gym and the new art wing was added on you, know all this money was being put into education, and it. Was kind of like the weight room was the last you, know the that seems frivolous you know it's it's just the weight room and I think it was just kind of gets good enough when. I first got here and saw the weight room it. Wasn't, organized, and it was kind, of a mess and there was no pride I mean it was really clear they were doing, a much better job of it now, because. They understand how important it is and they're taking pride in so all our kids are trying, to keep it keep, it pretty you know pretty organized, you, know there right now there's you know some of those machines you know the bolts, have come loose on the seats and they were they weren't safe and there's that bit there's a huge that huge machine in there I didn't know what it's called it's, too big for that room and there's just no use if, you if you use the space you can figure out how much that space is really being used it's. Not and so it's it's an efficient, is it a workable space you guys I mean so, it's exciting I mean we love seeing this, stage. At. This point. The. Opportunities, are endless and it's got the sky's the limit. I have. This little, I. Guess, post-it, note that. I've been collecting for, the last since, since I started working with kids and notice how crappy our weight room is but. Just things that you know we need to try to find money for right pull-up.

Bars Fix, the bars that we have we, need additional plate, what we're gonna do about the rowing machine and. Just, stuff like that that we were just going to try to find I'm. Trying to find money for or see if somebody in the community would buy it for us so but, I am now it's, over the way have. A going cert I'm, Derrick I'm gonna facilities director so. When we came in here we kind. Of dissected, this space there is a. Small. Hallway off to, you, know left, hand side for the next question. Came. About is this, wall maybe. It could go away I cannot. Express to you how much I'd love to get rid of this one this is this hallway is, it's. A wasted space and it, wants, to have. Things. Thrown it and people want to just because it's out of sight out of mind, we're. In discussions, about if, we can remove this wall or not and give us another six, or seven you know feet down this hallway so it would really kind of open up the space and kind of give us a more, dramatic transformation. To the weight room the wall is a load-bearing wall so, that means that you know it's supporting. The roofs at that point and, so we, are we're, actively looking at what our options are, that's going to be kind of a major piece that you know on the construction, side that we're going to deal with. Last. Summer we like added, on the little we welded the bottom extensions. On for the weights okay and, they're. Kind, of tricky sometimes the wiggle on and off those plates, is. There any like. Pieces. Of equipment that you, need. Like that you don't have right now we. Do do slot Olympic, workouts right now and the racks are kind of just we've, been wanting to get new racks all, the time we have to do like if we have a workout we, have to like really. Go in like different orders, and try to like figure, out how to do it without like waiting most of the time to. Use certain utilize, the hour that you have or whatever period, I feel like in athletics, the. Once, we all started kind of like my art class started to build around the weight room when, it came to games we had something to fall back on like we. Know like how hard we've worked do, you feel like that team building aspect yes yeah it comes, here yeah I think that it's a good place to start here like, just to like get in the routine and, being part of like a team helps, so much and like every other aspect like learning, how to like get along with people even if you might have like differences, putting, in is all that you have like. No matter what it just helps, like in every aspect of life like not just in sports I was really impressed by their excitement. Enthusiasm that, we were there doing this project for them and that, makes me even more pumped. To to. Do this for them and to give them a quality weight room that they can use they, have a space, it's a functional, space and they they, take care of what they have but, there's there's, there's more to it they need you, know a multi-level.

Type Of training facility, it seems like they've got a lot, of different, kids coming through here and, they've all got a different, sport, or a different, way of training and so, we're really focusing. On creating, a cross-functional. Multi-purpose. Weight room where, we can maximize a space we. Do what we're supposed to do I think it's going to be amazing. So. We put out a call to all of our coaches, and athletes and we set up a time on a Sunday that said you know bring anybody you can and wasn't required but we probably had about 40. People show. Up to. Help move equipment you know basically like just a little aunt line of people coming out of the old wait room up into the new space there are a few of the bigger pieces that we had to pull the bleachers out and move them up through the gate I mean the kids were they were into it they I think they know that it's for you. Know this thing that's going to benefit them so much everyone's, been so flexible and patient with it to just say yeah whatever we need to do to make it work. Probably. Our biggest change. Has been our new strength and conditioning coach that, we hired over the summer so that's been a great, change already, just for the the, culture of of that, part, of the school. Okay. So let's, get the jump ropes out those of you who don't have access to jump rope we're, gonna do jumping jacks. Alright. So right now we're actually in our current weight room and this. Is what we've got we've got this space it's a mezzanine area in the gymnasium. You, know it's not ideal we're. Always having to share the space with other activities, other sports, but, I always tell the athletes that you know we're, gonna make whatever space we have work. Okay, ready rock okay. Getting groups of three or four check. The sheet okay, we've got a paper up there you guys know the drill by now let's. Do three sets of eight on. On. The deadlifts, on the, bench, okay, modify, it because we've got short time today I mean, anything that's a step up from this is gonna be a win but. What I see is personally. I see, our, sports teams benefiting, from this the general student body I had a kid I was just talking to my last strength and conditioning class he, goes over to a commercial, gym here in town because. You. Know this isn't the most exciting place to workout, he said once we get a new gym he's, gonna start lifting here at the school so, that I would like to see I'd like to see the students, staying, here in the school after, school we know that the kids, that are involved in after-school programs their. Grades go up their graduation, rates go up issues. With drugs and alcohol go way down so, I just see this, weight room as just really the final piece to tying together our little community here and. We're. Visiting with Kirk calzacorto, with, the lift life foundation and how. Many do you think you can get done here over the course of a year so, we do two, projects. Per year it takes about three to four months per, project of back in planning, and logistics and, ordering, everything. That goes into it we do in a very short amount of time and Florida. Ceilings overhaul. Complete. With state of the art equipment for, these undercoated, students, at. These underfunded, high schools well I think it's great having spent a lot. Of my life in weight rooms I imagine as you have Congrats, and I think it's a great thing. Fully functional gym at, this point we have completely. Demoed. The entire thing floor, to ceiling we're super excited to kind of wrap up this week. The. Next three weeks when we come back. Hey. You guys hey. Buddy. Thanks, for. Joining us today, just. Gonna run through the game. Plan after being in Montana all. Last week demoing. A wall in the ceilings and, you get that email I sent you this morning I did. I sure good okay so, we'll kind of go through all. Those files that we sent a lot. Of the kids didn't really have like a wish list besides like the girls, wanted to see like bright. Gold other. Than that it's the equipment they want the most functional equipment, so mine is just kind of like the cherry on top I guess so when, I go back and talk to the guys we kind of throw out all the wild ideas of should.

We Do turf should we do like gold, plated, weights, should we do like I think it just starts. From there and then whatever is a feasible, be. Not, too over the top and, see kind of meets the requirements, they want then we'll. Start to go through that and then I'll start to develop different logos and different, ideas but, that's. Just where it starts is like kind. Of cycling, through everything we've gathered. Here and going from there, thanks. Andrew, of, course what. See in a month I know. We'll see ya a little bit less than upon races. The, last time I was in there when. Dylan was here, and they did that they took the wall out and had, done kind of that demo that was the last time I was, in there so it's been about a month just, the bare walls and, that you know the wall was taken out and I could see that but I haven't seen anything since this. Space has changed, dramatically, even structurally, prior. To us getting here this used to be a wall this actually was a hallway after, we got that cinderblock. Wall out we, left, during. That time we had the space painted, and the. Mirrors, came in and so, we came back we had to start building back the ceilings, and getting the lights back installed, we built that whole grid system we came in we started dropping tiles, and, then we started kind of doing borders and all that kind of stuff over the the next two days, all right guys day for the, ceiling. Is now complete some over we were waiting for the floorings arrive I got, Jody and it was a seed company here and James, to help us out we're, gonna, open this thing up and see what she looks like in a truck. For. Three days thank. You. Based. On budget for this project we had to do the flooring ourselves so it's a big undertaking but, we. Were, able to tackle, it and do, a quality. Job you, know so we're really happy with how it turned out and I think this is this is the first project that we can truly, say that we've done the. Entire project from floor to ceiling now, you know it's always been a floor to ceiling transformation. But we legitimately have, taken. This on, hundred. Percent and, now we've. Got all our our. Partners coming in we have kind, of the infrastructure in place now now we just have to to, transform, the rest of it. I. Really. Get the sense that the.

Kids Don't have any idea how, different. It's going to look I'm, just excited for the upgrade honestly, us. Being the first ones to use it pretty, cool you, know when we do it during the summer is always like stuffs falling apart, yeah, what's, like once every week they have to like organize all the stuff because it's just all over the place. I, was. Interviewed by some kids for the newspaper the student newspaper you. Know and when I was talking to him just, about, you, know what I think just based on seeing some of the videos and so I mean they were just like what it's not just like you, know a couple new pieces of equipment and that sort of thing so well. We put the video of some of the previous projects, out there I don't think a lot of the kids have seen them and so while. They're excited, I don't think they really know what's coming which I. Don't. Know good or bad that's kind, of the sense I get. Alright. Guys so for, those of you guys that haven't been here yet we're gonna get ready to start moving a lot of equipment the. Way that we've kind of got this thing designed here is we're gonna set it all on that platform out here to, keep everybody out in the water for tracking it back into the gym so. Let's, go there have a good time and get this thing done. One. Good thing about this, particular. School this time is with the ways these doors are setup for this particular school we, have easy access into, the lake room so it's, going to make this job so much easier compared. To the ones we've done, we. Had to cover up some of the equipment we put like blankets over top of them as we were like rolling them around because. They were too big to fit through the single door and they're, all trying to peek and look around and, I told you to look away and to be surprised. So. This morning we've been focused, on assembling. The rig there's. Three. Different pieces but two four six eight ten twelve, uprights. That, we had to. Assemble. Get. Plumb get square so the lot of measurements, involved, and then once we got, it, in the center of the, platform's. Here and we had to actually bolt them to the floor. The. Details, on this finger are amazing check out the logos. Up here but. You always go to a gym you just start working out but you don't understand, likes it details every little thing that like stacks up to actually, go 100. Pounds you just live 100 pounds it's like 20, pieces in that hundred pounds they enable. You to lift that that's, the cool part is like actually saw the stuff come together. Awesome. I think the gold is exactly. What we wanted and it's. Gonna be a really cool unique piece we've, never done before, honestly. I think we're in great shape the reason we laid, this gym out the way that we did was because we, understood, that it's. Not just for kids that are athletes is for all the kids I think anybody, will be able to walk in here and get a workout and I. Do. Get the sense that you, know people downplay. Where, they come from that, you know it's, just Park high and. I'm not sure where, that stems from it seems to be a feeling of. Even. What they have here they're not worthy of that, it's not for them it's for somebody else the, community, and the students, think, that they're like, second, class in some way the other thing is I think this is not a new phenomenon, I think, this attitude of being kind of second class people has been, here a while, long, before I've been here and so we really need something big to change. That a new, culture. And I, think that this weight room could, be that could be that big change we. Need to be more competitive here, at Park High School we. Are aware of that and it, starts in the weight room and so, it will give our kids that self-efficacy, that that, not only we have a nice weight room but now you got to put it into time I think everywhere from how you how the kids feel to how they compete it's gonna have a huge effect you, know the kids talk about other weight rooms across the state I hear it constantly of you know you should see Dylan's weight room you should see the, essentials, weight room I wish we had that I mean I hear that constantly, so, I think, that you know for kids to know that.

Other Schools are gonna come in here and see that and think that about them so. It's such a small thing but but. That's that's, huge and you know we're trying, to change tradition, and culture and all of those things again. The the timeliness of this and being a key focus of what our coaches, and our board and our administration, is looking at to say you, know we need to raise those expectations. Today's. Thursday. Tomorrow. Morning, 8 a.m. is the reveal and so, today. Is a lot, about just buttoning, up loose ends through, planing, and all that kind of stuff we've been able to stay ahead of schedule so, we're not you, know behind the eight ball at this point we are you, know where we needed to be every, at the end of every day we didn't have to put in you, know 20-hour, days to get ready to go the next day to do it again and so I'd feel more relaxed on on our process and where we're at through this whole thing I don't. Have any doubt that with, the team we have what we're gonna come through on, this one it's. Homecoming, week for Park High and so they do an, Ironman volleyball. Game the lift life team was invited to put together a team seven, o'clock tonight we're gonna bring. That house down. No, time. Good. Morning Rangers, are, you excited today. Happy. Homecoming week, thank you for all your participation. It's pretty exciting this morning, everybody, in this room is going to get to see the new weight room this morning. Couple. Of things I want to say first to this crew back here, they, will never be able to know how much we appreciate them and we will never be able to repay them obviously, if we could repay them we would have just done it ourselves but. They. Will never know how much we, are grateful, for what they have given you guys as a community, so, we hope that you will go in there without mindset, of wow this is a gift that was given to us by, this group of people and they, believed in helping students. And that is pretty cool. We. Are so, excited that today has. Finally come. As, Regina said my name is Dylan Cooper I have. The privilege of, working, for the lift life foundation, and also. Dominating. It some Ironman, volleyball. For. Those of you who didn't see it we actually got crushed by your senior boys lastly so. This. Has been an experience we will never forget, we. Hope this new training facility not. Only allows you to reap the benefits of getting super. Swole like my friend Rob here. No. But we really do we hope it acts as a rally, point for new beginnings. We, hope it gives the entire student, body the opportunity, to train in a safe, multi-use. Multi-sport. Sanctuary. That belongs to you the students, we. Hope that every time you step in there you're reminded, that your, local community, and people from across the country they. Believe in you guys they want you guys to succeed, so, remember, that when you're in there put into the hard work people, really, do care about you they want you to succeed. Was. Like. A career highlight you to see kids walking through pretty. Pretty, unforgettable, just. First class everything. Amazing. That's. At a right time for us get on I mean this is like. It's. Life-changing. Every. Morning since last March in here - six. I really. Like what you guys did with the space, extremely. Intelligent and we talked about it being like multifunctional.

For Females. Males classes. You, know strengthen the power and I think there's something forever absolutely. And some of this stuff I've never I haven't even seen and I thought I saw it all but I haven't so it's, gonna be fun to kind of see how some of this works. Can. We Bob. Okay. Things are gonna be a little bit different here in our brand new weight room okay I know I know everybody's excited. But, you'll find that there's. Still barbells in there there's still dumbbells in there there's still weight in there we're gonna be moving it all right nothing, different there so let's get our workout in. An. Investment, like this and this is what this is this is an investment, into our community, the students, that are going to be able to use. This weight room and then benefit from it and then their kids the ripple effect can, go just far, down the line I. Was. Kind of amazed that there. Was this much room to begin with I. Didn't. Realize that what. Our way your room used to be could turn into this. We've. Been fighting kind of this second, class mentality for. A long time and I. Think that it's very hard to, think. That in a facility like this. So. We're. Gonna take it up a notch all right so the first few weeks we've been doing total body stuff you. Guys are getting stronger I can see it already okay with a facility, like this the sky's the limit, I really. See big things and I, see us as a first class school, and first, class community, period. You. You.

2017-12-14 21:16

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