Town Guys Donate Services To Demo Strong Field

As Jay Testori and Chuck Lindahl waited just after dawn Tuesday for the rest of the work crew to show up at Strong Field, they reminisced about one of the last times they met on the field.

Lindahl, Daniel Hand High School '81, wore a jersey with the number 70 on it. Testori, Guilford High School '81, wore a jersey with the number 35 on it. Then, as in recent years, Hand beat its arch rival from just down the road. The DHHS  Tigers squeaked one out in 1980, when the score was 10-9. In 1981, Hand won a decisive victory with a score of 10-0. "We blocked a punt in the end zone that year," Chuck said.

But, boy was it fun, both said, looking at the field where they played so many times.

Chuck remembered that he broke his arm three times. Before games, he would take the cast off and put padding on so he could play, since casts weren't allowed on the field.

Jay, who moved to Madison about 25 years ago, laughed. "We never knew that or we would have gone right through your arm!" he said.

They both said they now bring that kind of dedication to the Strong Field project in their hometown, where their children have played or play sports. "We're town guys," Jay said, when asked why they were donating their services. "I've been in town 25 years, he's been here forever. We want to help. You know? We want to be a part of it. It's a big deal. It's going to be great when it's done. It's going to be phenomenal."

The hometown team Tuesday morning including town employees and the following men who donated their services, or the services of their company:

• Bobby and Vinny Anderson from Anderson Brothers Sanitation
• Vin Paolini from Fence World
• Chuck Lindahl from Lindahl Excavating
• Jay Testori from Testori Brothers Excavation
• Bob Blundon from Madison Earth Care
• Jay Santoro from the Madison Flower Shop and Garden Center

To find out more about the Strong Center At The Surf Club, you can check out their website at http://www.strongcentersurfclub.org/vision.html.