Fairfield Celebrates the Grand Opening of New RecPlex
A grand opening ceremony celebrating the completion of ¶¶Òô»ÆƬapp’s renovated Leslie C. Quick, Jr. Recreation Complex — the RecPlex—was held at the new, state-of-the-art facility on Friday, September 2.
"I want to encourage you, students and all the members of our ¶¶Òô»ÆƬapp community, to enjoy and utilize this great facility — I should get up there myself — and to make the RecPlex your home,” University President Jeffrey P. von Arx, S.J., said in his remarks to the hundreds of Fairfield students, faculty, staff and friends of the University, all gathered in front of the gleaming new complex on Loyola Boulevard.
The Recplex now features a 13,000 square-foot addition, a dramatic upper-level mezzanine for cardio equipment that’s flanked with windows overlooking the campus; a spacious and light-filled entryway, modern seating areas; strength training suites with all the latest equipment and upgraded Birkenstock Field House with interchangeable basketball, tennis and volleyball courts.
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Additionally, there is a cardio training suite, an elevated indoor track, improved infrastructure on the twenty-five-meter pool, renovated locker rooms and new group fitness areas for yoga, Pilates, and more.
The project, completed in just over a year, is a $22 million investment in the overall development of both present and future Fairfield students. Funding for the RecPlex project comes predominantly from alumni, parents and friends of the institution.
To kick-off the o 
pening, students participated in an official “door busting” and golden ticket scavenger hunt challenge while Friends of Athletics held their inaugural “Dunk Tank Challenge” where varsity coaches where dunked by Lucas in support of Fairfield Athletics.
“We are so excited to be here with all of you,” Zoë Ferranti ’17, FUSA vice president, announced to the crowd. “We can’t wait to get in and try it out and we’re sure all of you can’t wait to do the very same thing."
Rev. Jeffrey von Arx, S.J., also focused on Fairfield’s significant commitment to healthy living in his remarks: “to a sound mind and a sound body — and with this new facility, we put the face of that commitment right at the entrance of our beautiful campus.”
Serving the life of the mind, body and spirit is a mainstay of Jesuit and Ignation ideals. From the very beginning, what has distinguished Jesuit education has been the understanding that a true education means care for the whole person or ‘cura personalis.’
Haley Roberts '17, a biology major and one of the lucky students to find a golden ticket hidden in a first-floor cubby, said it was a “really fun” grand opening celebration. 
“On top of winning, it was really nice to see what the new RecPlex looks like and I’m really excited to use it,” Roberts said, already wearing her Fairfield logo-emblazoned backpack prize that was filled with a sporty water bottle, a drink koozie and a small notebook. "It’s going to be a nice place to go when you need to de-stress, get some exercise.”
