EAST PROVIDENCE — The East Providence High School gymnasium restoration project moved full steam ahead over the last few weeks, including the partial installation Sunday, July 7, of bleachers donated by Providence College.

A crew of about dozen hearty volunteers contended with 95 degree temps and near 100 percent humidity as they took part in the process, which included the transportation of the bleachers from a storage area in Riverside to the high school grounds.

The restoration project, being directed by local philanthropist John Carnevale, has raised upwards of $75,000, money which is being used to install the donated bleachers, paint the gym and completely overhaul the playing surface used for physical education classes, basketball and volleyball games as well as practices for other sports at the school.

In addition to the bleachers, coordinators of the project have also been working on the creation of a new logo for the center area of the basketball/volleyball court.

A number of those involved with the project have had input into the design, including EPHS head boys' basketball and girls' volleyball coach Alex Butler. The final design was put together by Jeff Carreira, an EPHS grad who is a graphic designer and employee of East Bay Newspapers, the parent company of The Post.

"I sent five or six examples of what I was looking for," Mr. Butler said. "This is our one chance to get it right. We're not going to be doing this again to the gym any time soon. It's our opportunity to brand the school. I do like what I've seen. I like where we're headed with the design."

The logo (pictured in this article) will literally be the centerpiece of the new floor design. It is expected the traditional interlocking "EP" logo long used by the school will also be incorporated on to the floor.

"With regards to the graphic design of the new center court logo and all other promotional flyers for the Townie Gym Project, we are proud to say we truly have one the best artists in the State of Rhode Island," said Mr. Carnevale. "A professional in every sense of the word, Jeff Carreira has stepped forward and donated countless hours to this grassroots community project. Jeff, a great childhood friend, has given our organization, D’Amours Step, the ability to share our vision and hearts through creative images filled with color and informative word play.

"Without Jeff's talents and unselfish service we would not have the capacity or the effectiveness with our media outreach efforts. Jeff gives us the ability to reach the community with regards to providing awareness and play a role creating a spark of energy in our hometown. We are so very grateful for all of his efforts."

Mr. Butler has suggested not painting the foul lane area because of the wear caused by both basketball and volleyball players. The boundary lines for both sports would be painted, but the coach would like to see a minimalist approach with upkeep in mind.Townies-Logo-Final(2)

"To me less is more. I don't want (the logo) to be too, too big or too, too gaudy," Mr. Butler continued. "What else they want to put on the floor is up to them. I wouldn't recommend painting the key. If they want to put the interlocking EP on the floor, I wouldn't have a problem with that. Maybe put one on opposite corners near the foul line."

The "Townie" in the logo, a creation of EPHS students in the 1970s, plays a prominent role in the new design. Mr. Butler and others suggested making the "Townie" look a bit more aggressive than in the past, showing the grit and determination EPHS teams have been noted for through the decades.

"I wanted them to beef it up, make him look a little more feisty," Mr. Butler said. "I definitely think they were on the right path when it comes to the look."

The script or font used in the lettering is, fittingly considering its donation to the project, based on the recent upgrade to the Providence College logo, which likewise featured a more aggressive Friar and bolder look.

"What I got from meeting with John about the new graphic/logo and the feedback he received from teachers, students and others was they really like the new Providence College logo and wanted to keep the tradition of the 'Townie' and not change him up too much, but make it more modern with cleaner lines and give him a bit of a tougher look," Mr. Carreira explained.

"So using that I used the original 'Townie' and used a template to create the new version slightly changing a few features to update his look while still keeping the tradition and integrity of the original 'Townie' and then incorporating it with big East Providence. There are still a few tweaks we will make going forward for other uses of it, but overall I think its close," he added.