Don and Pat Daufeldt, along with their three sons, have gifted $50,000 to West Liberty Community Schools toward the new athletic complex for the West Liberty High School.
The sons and their wives, Brent and Kelly Daufeldt, Bryan and Emily Daufeldt, and Brad and Audra Daufeldt, all living in West Liberty have a combined 13 children in the school district.
“There are 13 of our 17 grandchildren attending this school district, so we felt this was a worthy project to contribute to,” said Pat Daufeldt. “West Liberty has had a great school for many, many years and it is good to see this project emerging so we can stay at the forefront in education, sports, and all extra-curricular activities.”
Don Daufeldt was raised on a farm south of Atalissa and graduated from West Liberty High School in 1964. He and Pat have farmed their entire lives and are part-owners of and turkey growers for West Liberty Foods. They were one of the original families that started the business in the 1990s. Their three sons are also owners and involved in the family businesses.
“We want to give back to the community,” said Don, “We are excited about the new facilities, and all it will bring to West Liberty. It takes the effort of a lot of people to maintain the academic, sports, and extracurricular activities of a school in a growing community and get a project like this accomplished. We are happy to help.”
When completed, the athletic complex will be located south of the high school and have a large indoor facility for year-round training and competitions, and new outdoor facilities for baseball, softball, football, soccer, and track. The track is an area of special interest to the Daufeldt family as all four of their children, Brenda, Brent, Bryan, and Brad, threw discus and were Drake Relay and state track qualifiers throughout high school with multiple records and state championships. The youngest son, Brad, went on to throw for the University of Iowa, served as Captain of the Iowa track team, and has volunteered as a coach at West Liberty for many years.
“In a high school athletics program, it is invaluable to have a volunteer coach with experience competing at the Big 10 level available to our youth,” said Activities Director, Adam Loria. “We are getting something from Brad for free that other families have to pay for in private lessons. I’m hoping these new facilities attract more of that.”
The Daufeldts helped build the existing discus and shot-put area and have given design input on the new facility. All three sons have volunteered as coaches for various sports over the years and have been a valuable resource for the district.
“We try to support the school as much as we can either through coaching, donations, or volunteer work. My wife is a substitute teacher, and all our kids are all involved in multiple activities. We see the benefits for kids who participate in extracurricular programs. They do better in school and have a better chance at success beyond high school” said Brent, the oldest son.
The school district is grateful for the monetary gift, volunteer commitment and design feedback from the Daufeldts.
“We want to do this project right, the first time,” said Superintendent Shaun Kruger. “My experience is running a school district, not construction and not track and field. We have a list of individuals with years of experience in different athletics programs who we are consulting for feedback and input on final design.”
“It’s great to have help from the Daufeldts in the shotput and discus area, but a financial gift of this size in addition to that is amazing,” Kruger pointed out. “We are beyond grateful for this substantial donation.”
Anyone interested in making a donation or finding out more about the new sports complex can contact Kruger at 319-627-2116 or Loria at 319-627-2116.