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The Ogden City Council and staffers tour the new Marshall N. White Community Center as construction enters the final stretch on Friday, Feb. 28, 2025.

Rob Nielsen, Standard-Examiner

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This undated photo shows Ogden Police Department Patrol Officer Nate Lyday.

Photo supplied

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OGDEN — As the new Marshall N. White Community Center races towards completion, the city has moved forward on a major part of its identity.

On Tuesday, the Ogden City Council voted unanimously to name the center’s fieldhouse the Nathan James Lyday Fieldhouse. Lyday served the Ogden Police Department for 15 months until he was killed in the line of duty in May 2020.

“The Marshall White Community Center has always stood for connection, service, and community,” Ogden Police Chief Jake Sube said in a press release from Ogden City prior to Tuesday’s meeting. “This vision was shaped by Sergeant Marshall ‘Doc’ White and carried forward by Officer Nathan Lyday, who both gave their lives standing up for Ogden and its people. Naming the Field House in Officer Lyday’s honor is not about creating a memorial but about celebrating those who truly embody the spirit of this city. Officer Lyday grew up here, served here, and had a deep passion for both community and sports–values that align perfectly with this facility’s mission to bring people together and strengthen Ogden.”

The suggestion to name the fieldhouse after Lyday came from Ron White — the son of Marshall White for whom the community center is named and who was also killed in the line of duty while serving with the Ogden Police Department in October 1963.

“He’s part of the family,” White said during Tuesday’s meeting. “He’s part of the community. He belongs to a unique group of people that sacrificed their life in the line of duty and we should put those heroes up on a pedestal and definitely look to them as leaders and role models.”

He added that he hopes this will inspire those who utilize the facility.

“In today’s society where our police officers are being used against our citizens, we definitely need to bring people closer together, bring groups closer together and hopefully this will be a sign of a good future for our police officers to be role models and mentors for our young people in Ogden,” he said. “That’s my intention.”

Andrew Lyday, father of Nathan Lyday, also spoke during Tuesday’s meeting.

“We felt like this was a really nice honor to be able to remember Nate this way,” he said.

During public comment on the item, a concern was raised that there hadn’t been much in the way of public discussion about the naming of the fieldhouse. Council Vice Chair Richard Hyer did enter a motion to extend the resolution until more feedback could be sought from the Marshall White Center Advisory Committee.

However, Council Member Shaun Myers argued that the board was in a prime position to move forward Tuesday night.

“We can move ahead with this without too much more ado,” he said. “It’s a great proposal and I don’t have any reason why we need to wait and debate with others.”

Hyer subsequently withdrew his motion and the council voted to move forward with the renaming.

The Marshall N. White Community Center is expected to be completed in early May.