Lassiter High School, the late Philip Lutzenkirchen’s alma mater, held a ceremony to dedicate Lutzie Field on Friday, Aug. 14.
The new artificial turf field was started June 29. The project was organized by Lassiter High School, the Cobb County Board of Education and Lutzie 43, the foundation founded by the Lutzenkirchen family after Philip was killed in a car accident in Georgia in 2014.
Hundreds of people, including Philip’s family, friends and former teammates, were in attendance to celebrate the legacy Philip left.
“It's a great honor to Philip,” said Mike Lutzenkirchen, Philip’s father. “I think he’d be embarrassed by all the publicity, but I think he would fully understand that there's a purpose to it and a meaning.”
The family was overwhelmed by the turnout for the dedication.
“It says a lot about who he was, but more importantly it tells you what this community is like,” Mike said. “They all respected Philip and knew that he was humble and loved this place.”
In addition to the field dedication, the ceremony also included the presentation of the Lutzie Leader Award, an honor given to a Lassiter player each season who exhibits academic and athletic excellence along with character. The award was given to Brent Penter, who will wear Philip’s No. 13 this season.
Philip was also posthumously inducted into the Lassiter High Hall of Fame during the ceremony.
The Lutzie 43 Foundation will also host a 5k run at Lassiter High on Saturday morning, Aug. 15.
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