For decades, anyone heading to the concession stand at Dodger Stadium to get a soda and some snacks was likely to spot Steve Springer working there.

Springer, who died of cancer in June 2020, ”spent years and years and years running and organizing and doing everything for the concession stand and it was important to him,” his widow, Juli Springer, said recently.

The concession stand where he spent so much time will be getting some upgrades in his honor.

Those upgrades will be paid for, at least in part, by $13,000 raised during the Aug. 14 Prairie Rivers Trail Ride. About 150 bicyclists participated in the ride.

Exactly what will be done at the concession stand will be determined by Fort Dodge Community School District officials and leaders of the Fort Dodge Athletic Booster Club.

We believe the end result will be a worthy tribute to Steve Springer, who served on the school district’s Board of Education and was a member of the Athletic Booster Club.

The money that will help make that possible was generated by a relatively new initiative that is making a positive impact on the community.

The Prairie Rivers Trail Ride debuted in 2019. That first year it honored the late Josh Doyle, who died of a rare heart condition at age 29. That ride raised $7,000, which was used to buy seven automated external defibrillators, which can save the life of a heart attack victim. Those defibrillators were given to organizations like Athletics For Education and Success.

The 2020 version of the ride went on despite the pandemic. It honored the late Rev. Al Henderson, senior pastor at St. Paul Lutheran Church and chaplain to local law enforcement agencies and the Fort Dodge Fire Department. The ride raised $8,000, which was donated to Serving Our Servants, a group Henderson started to support law enforcement officers and firefighters.

The money was then divided between the Fort Dodge fire and police departments. The Fire Department is using its share to provide free smoke detectors to residents who need one. The Police Department is using its share for community outreach programs.

Bruce and Carol Breeser, along with the other organizers of the ride, have launched something that is poised to benefit the community for decades to come.