SportsTurf

April 2014

SportsTurf provides current, practical and technical content on issues relevant to sports turf managers, including facilities managers. Most readers are athletic field managers from the professional level through parks and recreation, universities.

Issue link: https://read.dmtmag.com/i/282941

Contents of this Issue

Navigation

Page 19 of 51

F or 28-year-old Craig Sampsell working in the sports turf industry has been his passion as long as he can remember. From youth sports to the professional ranks, he has manicured athletic fields of all shapes and sizes. But the path has been anything but straight and narrow. Growing up near Indianapolis, Craig was quickly drawn to turf management through his father, who owned a sports field construction and renovation company called Diamond Designs. Before Craig could drive a car, he would accompany his dad and uncle to projects around the state to lend a helping hand. While most kids were competing on these fields, Craig was learning about proper safety and field preparation techniques. His love affair with natural grass turned serious at 16, when he dropped out of high school to work full-time for Diamond Designs. Three years later, the company folded and, in early 2003, Craig and his dad were without jobs. Fortunately, their sports turf expertise was quickly acknowl- edged by Carmel Dads' Club, a 100-plus acre sports complex near Indiana's Clay County. Dad and son were hired full-time in August 2003 and spent countless hours together mowing, aerat- ing, edging, overseeding and topdressing. As things just started to feel normal again, the family would suffer an even larger tragedy. In January 2004, Craig's mom took her own life. Racked with grief, he began to head down a very dark road. For the next few years, he was uncertain of his purpose on earth. He didn't have a high school degree or any direction to follow. Craig gained signifi- cant weight and began smoking to deal with the stress. Regardless of the tough times, his appetite for sports turf never faded and he tried to stay focused on his work at Carmel Dad's Club. Finally, Craig's luck began to turn. In January 2006, just 2 years after his mother's passing, he met his future wife, Caroline. She immediately started guiding him back to a better track and questioned why he hadn't pursued his GED. Craig didn't have an answer and, to be honest, he didn't have an answer for most ques- tions in life. With Caroline's persistence, Craig was a high school graduate by August 2006 with an Honors GED and, soon after, enrolled at Indiana University-Purdue University of Indianapolis (IUPUI) to study sports management. To learn more about his specific trade, Craig became a mem- ber of the Sports Turf Managers Association (STMA) and con- ducted extensive research online. He reached out to other sports 20 SportsTurf | April 2014 www.sportsturfonline.com HOW SPORTS TURF SAVED A LIFE Facility & Operations | By Glenn Gray Craig Sampsell Throughout his journey, Craig has numerous people to thank for their support and confidence that he would, one day, succeed. He's been so impressed with the STMA and how the organization has always emphasized the importance of acting like a professional and doing the job right. Louisville Slugger Field. Photo by Mike Stewart.

Articles in this issue

Links on this page

Archives of this issue

view archives of SportsTurf - April 2014