Dona and Duane "Moose" Woltzen cut the ribbon for the
opening of the gymnasium named after them.
SHEBOYGAN, Wis. – It was the day before Father’s Day,
and former Lakeland College athletes from several decades were, fittingly,
honoring a man many looked to as a father. Lakeland formally dedicated its new
gymnasium The Moose and Dona Woltzen Gymnasium, honoring Duane "Moose" Woltzen,
one of Wisconsin’s most successful college basketball coaches, and his wife,
Dona.
"Today is the day before Father’s Day," said Waymon
Stewart, an NAIA all-American and 1969 Lakeland graduate who still holds several
school records. "Isn’t it appropriate when Moose was such a father to most of
us?"
Woltzen, a Minonk, Ill., native and graduate of Minonk High School,
and his wife came to Lakeland in 1964, and when he stepped down in 1988
he had amassed a 536-229 record, including 20 or more wins in 18 of his
23 seasons.
For years the state’s winningest basketball coach,
Woltzen was the first college basketball coach in Wisconsin to win 500 career
games and the Muskies won 11 conference championships during his
tenure.
Woltzen, who remains closely connected with many of his
former players, is a member of the Lakeland College Athletic Hall of Fame,
Wisconsin Basketball Coaches Association Hall of Fame, Illinois State University
Athletic Hall of Fame and NAIA District 14 Athletic Hall of
Fame.
Lakeland's new gym, which will open this
fall, is part of a $6.4 million expansion of the Todd Wehr Athletic Center.
Along with the new wood-floor gymnasium, which will seat 1,200 spectators (with
a planned future expansion to seat 1,800), the project includes a
4,400-square-foot fitness center, several new locker rooms, a classroom and a
multi-purpose room.
"It is the finest building the college has ever built and it
deserves a good name," said Lakeland President Stephen Gould. "Moose
and Dona are, without question, the most respected couple in Lakeland
College history. Together, they made a difference in the lives of many
Lakeland student athletes."
The expansion will add 47,000 square feet, nearly
doubling Lakeland’s existing complex. The existing main lobby has been fully
renovated, providing a central hub to both the existing facility and the
expansion.
The fitness center is filled with life fitness equipment
including treadmills and cardiovascular machines for use by Lakeland students
and employees.
The existing gymnasium in the Wehr Center, which opened
in the fall of 1984 and seats 900, will be used for intramural leagues and other
recreation options that aren’t currently available due to space
constraints.
"College students are active, and we have always had a goal of
providing our always growing number of non-athletes with more
opportunities for them to be active on our campus,” Gould said. "The
current Wehr Center is busy from 5 a.m. until 11 p.m., so it’s nearly
impossible for our non-athletes to form an intramural league or even
shoot some hoops.
"The Wehr Center expansion offers something for everyone. Our
basketball, volleyball and wrestling teams will have a new home court.
And our non-athletes will have more room to roam inside on those cold
winter days and nights."
Lakeland,
which was founded in 1862, currently has 871 students and has set
enrollment records for six straight years. Lakeland also had an adult
learning program with over 2,000 students taking classes at centers
throughout the state and online.
