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Photos from Re-Dedication Ceremony (4/17) 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 | 20 | 21 April 17, 2004 Major Gift Commitment Received For SIUE Baseball Stadium (EDWARDSVILLE, Ill.) Southern Illinois University Edwardsville baseball received a major commitment from John Simmons and Jeff Cooper from SimmonsCooper Attorneys at Law to enable completion of the Cougars’ baseball complex. SIUE Director of Athletics Brad Hewitt said the generous gift ushers in the latest in a string of improvements at Roy E. Lee Field. Hewitt said the announcement of the amount would forthcoming pending formal approval by the SIU Board of Trustees. “The gift will enable us to complete the SIUE baseball stadium project and explore the expansion of the site into a baseball complex,” said Hewitt. Simmons grew up in East Alton and served in the Army as a combat engineer. He later attended SIUE where he was elected Student Body president and earned a position in the Dean’s College. After earning a bachelor's from SIUE, he went on to receive a law degree from Southern Methodist. In 1999, he opened The Simmons Firm L.L.C. which grew to 31 attorneys and 220 staff members. Recently appointed as a member of the SIU Board of Trustees, Simmons and his wife, Jayne, have four children. Cooper was raised in Granite City, received a bachelor’s from DePauw University and a law degree from Saint Louis University. He opened his own firm in Granite City and ran for Congress in 2000. After the election, Cooper joined Simmons in what is now SimmonsCooper. He resides in Edwardsville with his wife, Francesca, and two children, Jack and Ella. They are expecting a third child in September. Improvements that already have been made in the past year to the SIUE’s baseball field include new dugouts, nets behind home plate, a warning track around the field, and a locker room facility. Hewitt said previous gifts secured from former players Fernando Aguirre, Steve Davis and current assistant Steve Haug also were instrumental in the current changes at Roy E. Lee Field. -siue cougars- |
