The road to success was not an easy one. The sport of gymnastics has increased dramatically in popularity since the founding of the Parkettes. As gymnastics grew, so did the Strausses means to provide a quality program to their students. In their formative years, the Parkettes practiced in places such as a barn with no heat, a dimly lit basement of a church, the Strauss's own backyard (during the summer), and the second and third floors of Symphony Hall in Allentown's downtown area! The Strausses and their gymnasts worked in unbelievable surroundings, using used or even "homemade" equipment. Yet they continued to achieve success after success. In 1976, a Parkette gymnast qualified as a member of the USA Olympic Team. In 1979, Parkettes competed for the United States in the Pan American Games and brought recognition to the USA and the Lehigh Valley. 1981 found a Parkette on the USA World Gymnastics Championships Team competing in Moscow. However successful, the Strausses knew that if the true potential of the gymnasts were to be tapped, they would need a modern training facility, which would afford Olympic level gymnasts a safe environment in which to work. Of equal importance to them was their interest in providing local children with the opportunity to gain the physical and psychological benefits associated with the sport of gymnastics. This facility needed to serve not only competitive gymnasts, but the entire Lehigh County and beyond. Alfred W. Pelletier, then Chairman of the Board of Mack Trucks, Inc., heard of the plight of the Parkettes and realized that Allentown and this country had a "diamond in the rough." Through the efforts of Mr. Pelletier, the Parkettes Parents Organization, and many other local businesses and private citizens, enough monies were raised to begin construction of a new Olympic sized and equipped training center on land donated by the City of Allentown. Groundbreaking was held during March of 1981 and by Thanksgiving weekend of that year, the Parkettes had moved into the finest gymnastic training facility available in the United States. One week later, the Parkettes competed in the First International Team championships held at Madison Square Garden in New York City. They placed second behind the powerful Chinese team and finished as the top United States team. What a difference a new gym makes! The atmosphere among the gymnasts and their families was one of great relief…they had finally made it to the end of their rainbow (or so they thought). This was just the beginning, of a long history of Parkette successes on the national and international gymnastics scene. In 1983, a Parkette was on the World Championship Team. In 1986, Parkettes finished 1st, 2nd and 4th in Championships of the USA. These girls then went to Moscow to compete in the Goodwill Games that same year. The Parkette success culminated in 1988 when Hope Spivey became a member of the United States Olympic Team. Coach's Bill and Donna Strauss also obtained Olympic positions, with Bill being named Administrator for the Women's Gymnastic program and Donna being named Co-Coach of the Olympic team. The Parkettes organization provides the finest in gymnastics training to over 1200 local children that participate to have fun while developing physcial fitness, coordination, strength and flexibility. Recreational classes begin with Pre-school classes (1-6), followed by our after school boys and girls programs. For the gymnast who is interested in competing, the opportunity exists on one of the many different teams, and is handled on an individual basis. |