Students at Empire School now have more choices when jumping around on playground equipment, after new play structures were installed recently at the school.
The school held a grand opening celebration on May 24 to acknowledge the new play equipment and those individuals, groups, and businesses who contributed to the project. Students were also treated to juice boxes and popsicles.
Empire School has been fundraising for a new play structure since 2016, explained principal Kelly Logan. The school has never had its own play structures on its property. There is playground equipment nearby but it is on city property.
Furthermore, the structure is not large enough to accommodate many students at one time. Since the school population is 135, students from kindergarten to Grade 3 were allowed on in the morning and other grades could go on in the afternoon.
“It’s amazing … ,” Logan said about the new equipment. “It’s good for our kids and the community.”
The cost to purchase and install the new play structures was $30,000. Some of the funding came from school fundraisers, while the Prairie South School Division matched what the school raised.
Installation of the equipment began on May 21 and was completed early on May 24.
Several organizations supported the project by sending volunteers to help with fundraisers, said Logan, including The Royal Bank of Canada, The Friendly City Optimist Club, and members of the South Hill Community Association.
“It’s awesome,” said Chris Turcotte, president of the Optimist Club. “We’ve waited a long time … but really, all that matters is the play equipment is here for the kids. It’s very nice and well used.”
The Optimist Club supported this initiative since it was looking for a large project on which to work, she continued. There were several options, but it wanted a project that was in town. Members also wanted to support a project in an area where there were not many playground structures for children.
Turcotte joked that this project lined up nicely since the Optimistic baseball park is adjacent to the school property. It wasn’t the deciding factor, but it contributed to their desire to support the initiative.
“It’s quite impressive to see those kids (on the structures),” she added. “Our club continues to work to improve our community and services for our children and youths.”
