Facilities Management Hosts First Pete Witschen Field Day

The Office of Facilities Management at Nova Southeastern University (NSU) held its inaugural Pete Witschen Field Day to celebrate the life of former university leader Peter J. Witschen.

Otherwise known as “Pete” by his colleagues, Witschen began his career at NSU in 2008 and served as the vice president of Facilities Management from 2012 to 2015. Witschen aided in the construction of notable buildings like the Parker building and Guy Harvey Oceanographic Research Center. His work at NSU created a legacy, but sadly in 2015, Witschen passed away from a rare type of cancer at the age of 65.

The Pete Witschen Field Day was spearheaded by Daniel J. Alfonso, the current vice president of Facilities Management and staff member Lela Fairchild. Alfonso and Fairchild collaborated on this project by creating an interactive outdoor field day that supported the Pete Witschen Scholarship Fund.

Although the day was meant to be celebrated on June 4, originally Witschen’s birthday, the event was held on Friday, June 11, from 1 to 4 p.m. on the AutoNation football field.

“It’s been a very stressful year for everybody, especially those who have lost family members and friends due to COVID-19. This is a great opportunity to bring everyone together and celebrate the fact that we’ve gone through this whole year, and we’ve been able to maintain the campus and ensure NSU, as a whole, is running smoothly,” Alfonso said.

The Office of Facilities Management is comprised of 187 staff members and about 70 of those employees participated in the field day event.

“It’s about getting out there and having fun, while at the same time raising money for the Pete Witschen Scholarship Fund,” Fairchild said.

The field day games ranged from a football throwing contest to Jenga and even a candy counting contest. Alongside these games, the Alumni Relations and Annual Giving (University Advancement) team were present to cheer on the spirit and generosity of attendees.

“To me, this is a great opportunity not only to raise funds for scholarships, but to get our employees out of the office and onto the field where they’ve been working for a year without a whole lot of opportunity to talk in-person with each other,” Alfonso said. “We work in facilities, and I tell our folks that we create the environment where research, teaching and learning takes place.”

Alfonso emphasized the importance of camaraderie in his department and how they’re busy planning and preparing for the upcoming fall semester.

The inaugural Pete Witschen Field Day is set to become an annual event for the employees of Facilities Management and will continue to serve as a commemorative day to honor the unit’s beloved former vice president.

For more information regarding the Pete Witschen Scholarship Fund, contact Lela Fairchild at plela@nova.edu.