Fenton fans want to rededicate field

Christine Carrillo

It’s where former Sea King Sean Fenton played and showcased his

athletic prowess. It’s where many Corona del Mar High School fans and

Newport-Mesa community members got to see him in action.

And now, those same fans and community members are banding

together to honor the young man they refuse to forget by naming the

football field after him.

Fenton, a 2000 Corona del Mar High graduate, was known for his

intelligence and athletic abilities, both of which took him to Yale

University, where he played on the football team for two years.

But on Jan. 17, while driving with friends on the East Coast,

Fenton, a 20-year-old computer science major, and three other

passengers were killed in a car accident.

When knowledge of his death reached Newport-Mesa, the community

lent the Fenton family its support. Now, the community is working to

keep his memory alive.

“We’ve been needing a scoreboard for quite a while and we thought

it would be a great honor to bestow to Sean to bring the scoreboard

in his recognition and basically be part of a healing process,” said

Brent Ogden Jr., a volunteer football coach for the school and the

leader of this tribute.

With the school’s Parent Teacher Assn. making the first $5,000

donation to support the new scoreboard bearing the title “Sean Fenton

Field,” people throughout the community have shown their support for

the proposal.

“I think that everyone feels this is a great addition, and to do

this for Sean, it’s just such a perfect thing to epitomize Sean’s

life,” said Sean’s father, Robert Fenton. “We truly are overwhelmed.

... The support has been amazing. Sean was a very special kid, a

selfless person, and that’s why this [would be] a great thing for

him.”

But the new $30,000 scoreboard is more of a hope than a reality.

Before the school can put the honorary scoreboard in place, it must

receive approval from the Department of State Architects and the

Newport-Mesa Unified School District.

According to board policy, nothing can be done in memoriam at

school sites unless the individual has been dead for at least two

years, allowing time to assess whether the memoriam is appropriate,

said Jaime Castellanos, assistant superintendent of secondary schools

for the district.

Since Fenton does not yet fit the criteria, Ogden plans to present

a proposal to the school board for its approval.

“It makes my heart sad to think that someone’s life has been cut

short,” said Sharon Fry, principal at Corona del Mar High. “Whether

it’s a field or a plant or something else we do to remember him,

somewhere in my heart, I know these are good things.”

Many community supporters, as well as the Fenton Family, can’t

think of a better tribute.

“Certainly for our family, it’s a great honor, and it’s something

that I know Sean would have loved,” Robert Fenton said. “He was very,

very committed both academically and athletically to Corona del Mar

High School. It seems like the most fitting thing that can be done in

his honor.”

* CHRISTINE CARRILLO covers education and may be reached at (949)

574-4268 or by e-mail at christine.carrillo@latimes.com.