University Writer, Virginia Tech
Cold rain fell while Matthew Dates made his way through the muddy construction site, iPad in hand and wearing a hard hat, a reflective vest - and his Virginia Tech ring. Every few minutes, he stopped to take a picture or to chat with a member of the construction crew.
It was one of his twice-monthly visits to Virginia Tech’s English Field at Union Park, Rector Field House and the James Weaver Baseball Center, three athletic facilities in the midst of significant transformation.
Every two weeks, Dates boards a plane in Buffalo, New York, his home, for the approximately 342-mile flight to Roanoke, Virginia.