TOPEKA, Kan. – At the Oct. 29, 2020 Washburn Board of Regents meeting, it was unanimously voted to change the name of the Washburn Softball Complex to Gahnstrom Field in recognition of Bill and Emilie Gahnstrom, who have funded $420,000 in improvements to the softball complex in the past three years including a lead gift to regrade and add turf to the entire field prior to the 2020 season. They are also solely responsible for funding the next project to add lighting to the complex which was also improved at the Board of Regents meeting.
 
"Emilie and I are thrilled the Washburn Board of Regents has approved the proposal to add lights to the Washburn Softball Complex. We have closely followed the softball program since Coach Holaday arrived in 2017 and we have been extremely impressed by her leadership which emphasizes student success and community service in addition to softball. We have observed how hard the "ladies" (players) work and compete as individuals and as a team and how much they care about each other. We have been eager to support improvements in the softball facilities beginning with the turfing of the field and now the lights. Lighting the field will allow Washburn to host regular and postseason tournaments as well as other community softball events. A lighted field will enable the softball team to practice in the evening when daylight is reduced, and when evenings provide the best time for team practices. The addition of lights to Washburn's turfed field will provide Washburn with one of the finest softball facilities in the MIAA and assist the Softball Program in recruiting. Emilie and I are humbled and honored the Washburn Board of Regents decided to change the name of the Washburn Softball Complex to the Gahnstrom Field.
 
"The willing generosity that Bill and Emilie Gahnstrom have provided to our softball program is unique and special," Ichabod softball head coach Brenda Holaday said. "There are not many softball programs in the country that can match this level of support. Bill and Emilie became part of our softball family a few years ago and they not only provide financial support but they have individual and meaningful relationships with all of our coaches and players. In terms of what adding lights to our beautiful turf field means for our program, it is a game changer. We have several players and coaches who are not able to practice until evening. Additionally, this allows us to start our games later on week days so that more fans can attend and it allows us to host tournaments. Putting Bill and Emilie's name on our field is special. They have been instrumental in the transformation that has taken place for our facility, both in their gifts for our field and now lights. I know how much it means to our coaches, players and parents to have the field named in their honor."
 
Bill was employed as a math professor at Washburn who retired after 24 years of teaching and his wife Emilie, who is an active volunteer, have been instrumental in the effort to raise funds for new field turf and lights on the Washburn softball diamond. The Ichabods are only one of three teams in the MIAA to have a fully-turfed field.
 
"The generosity of the Bill and Emilie Gahnstrom and their dedication to the softball program has been instrumental to the renovation project," Washburn athletic director Loren Ferré said. "It's through their commitment to the softball program we can give our student-athletes the best-possible experience by having one of the best facilities in the MIAA and we could not have accomplished this without their support. We are proud to now be able to refer to the home of Ichabod softball program as Gahnstrom Field."