New Bremen-New Knoxville Rotary Club holds “build day” for Sunshine Playground
By: Scott M. Frey
NB-NK Rotary PR Chair, Sunshine Committee member
“One of the milestone days in this project has arrived,” said Kristin Hough, NB-NK Rotary Club President. “Our Sunshine Project Committee has been working toward this day for a year and a half, and we’re finally ready to begin building the Sunshine Playground.” The playground equipment was delivered in December, and has been in storage, awaiting installation. The build will take place at Bremenfest Park on Saturday April 14th, starting at 8:00 am. “We have over 50 volunteers lined up for the day,” said Hough. “We are blessed to have had many volunteers step up to help us make this dream a reality. It will take us most of the day, but in the end it will be worth it to see it installed. I cannot wait until we’re actually able to cut the ribbon and see kids playing.”
New Bremen-New Knoxville Rotary Club members and volunteers from the community will assemble the playground equipment under the direction of Bob Griewe from Dave Williams and Associates, a consulting firm who builds special needs playgrounds. Several local businesses will provide meals and refreshments throughout the day. Donors include McDonald’s of Minster and the New Bremen chapter of the TLC-OCCL mom’s club. The concrete work is being done by Homan and Stucke Construction, Inc. in New Bremen. They are pouring and forming all of the sidewalks, curbing and piers for the project with concrete donated by the Spring Creek Concrete Co. in Minster. “I cannot say enough about the level of support we’ve received from the community and especially from area businesses like Homan and Stucke.” Hough said. “Spring Creek really stepped up big with this donation of concrete. With that savings we’re able to meet our fundraising goal more quickly, and even add a few extras to the project.”
The Rotary-Inspired Sunshine Playground is specifically designed for children with special needs and various physical and mental challenges. The beauty of the playground is that when completed, it will be integrated with an existing playground, situated in a park with shelter houses, handicapped-accessible restrooms, and a beautiful handicapped accessible swimming pool. Because of the setting, children with special needs and children without special needs can play and interact with each other in a safe, fun environment.
A ribbon cutting is being planned for some time in June. Follow along with the progress of the Sunshine Playground on facebook by searching “Sunshine Playground and visit www.rotarysunshineproject.org for information on the overall Sunshine Project.