The 50th anniversary of the Harlan and Hazel Rogers Sports Complex will be celebrated on Sunday, Sept. 8.

The celebration will begin at 2 p.m. on the Boulevard of Champions, where a short program will highlight the past, present and future of the Fort Dodge institution.

“Where we were” will feature speaker Liddy Hora, the granddaughter of Harlan and Hazel Rogers, said Lori Branderhorst, Parks, Recreation and Forestry director for the city of Fort Dodge.

“‘Where we went’ is going to be focusing on the Harlan Rogers Development Group that did the huge campaign of building on tradition,” Branderhorst said.

The third section of the program, “Where we’re going,” will be presented by Branderhorst.

“That one, it’s just about where we’re going in our next 50 years, and focus on our partnerships that we have with all the different agencies.”

The program will close with remarks from the Parks, Recreation and Forestry Commission Chair Michael Payne.

Following the first program, there will be a dedication and naming rights ceremony for the park’s north concession stand. The concession stand will be named for Dean Williams.

“Dean Williams was very monumental in getting Harlan Rogers (to support the building of the sports complex),” Branderhorst said. “He was part of a group that helped present to Harlan Rogers the idea of building a community ball park.”

The program will include members of Williams’ family.

“We’ll be inviting past umpires, past players, past people who were involved in 1969 and who were involved through the years in making the success of the ball park,” Branderhorst said.

Both programs at Rogers Sports Complex on Sept. 8 are open to the public.

“We just hope there’s a big turnout because it is quite an important placeholder in our community for both recreation and tourism,” Branderhorst said. “It’s pretty important, not just for our community, but for the county and the region. We hope people can take an hour or so out of their day to come out and celebrate with us.”