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by Michael Monks
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July 21 was already on the calendar for the playground at Sixth District to undergo a renovation. There was to be a new swing set, a learning garden, and an educational art display to cover the adjacent asphalt. What had started as a small planned project had grown bigger thanks to grants scored from the Lowe's and the Center for Great Neighborhoods. All the plans changed, however, when a fire destroyed half the existing playground equipment in June. "We went, 'OK, we have to regroup'," said Heather Abbott, a student affairs specialist at Gateway College and chairperson of that school's partnership with Sixth District Elementary. "How can we illuminate the silver lining, so we came up with community involvement day."
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Volunteers from across Covington and the region answered the call and attended Saturday's event at Sixth District, planting flowers, donating money, offering suggestions for the new playground. City Commissioners Steve Casper & Steve Frank and Covington Independent Public Schools Superintendent Lynda Jackson raised money by volunteering to have buckets of water dumped on them for just a buck a shot. More than two-thousand dollars was raised and Lowe's has promised to match whatever money the volunteers could chip in.
Volunteers from across Covington and the region answered the call and attended Saturday's event at Sixth District, planting flowers, donating money, offering suggestions for the new playground. City Commissioners Steve Casper & Steve Frank and Covington Independent Public Schools Superintendent Lynda Jackson raised money by volunteering to have buckets of water dumped on them for just a buck a shot. More than two-thousand dollars was raised and Lowe's has promised to match whatever money the volunteers could chip in.
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| Lynda Jackson gets a soaking after a young girl's solid throw |
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"This is truly a community school so there's going to be an outcry of support and that's wonderful because this playground was used a lot," Lynda Jackson said. The superintendent explained that the school's surveillance cameras only captured the image of a solo male fleeing the playground the night that it burned but so far no arrest has been in what police are investigating as arson.
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The cost of the damage has been described as ranging from $30,000 to $70,000 while the cost to rebuild has ranged in estimates from $15,000 - $50,000. The school district expects to receive its three bids for the work this week. The standing equipment is still in good shape and whatever is added will be built near what wasn't burned. Danielle Eulitt of Keep Covington Beautiful, an organization also deeply involved in the original plans for the playground's renovation, anticipates more equipment for special needs students and more educational components such as litter prevention and conservation to find their ways into the rebuilt park's design.
The cost of the damage has been described as ranging from $30,000 to $70,000 while the cost to rebuild has ranged in estimates from $15,000 - $50,000. The school district expects to receive its three bids for the work this week. The standing equipment is still in good shape and whatever is added will be built near what wasn't burned. Danielle Eulitt of Keep Covington Beautiful, an organization also deeply involved in the original plans for the playground's renovation, anticipates more equipment for special needs students and more educational components such as litter prevention and conservation to find their ways into the rebuilt park's design.
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In the meantime, more volunteers are responding to help. On Sunday, members of the Seven Hills Church will be sanding, staining, and resealing the existing structure. And then in August, the United States Navy is coming in to help. Heather Abbott explained that she could purchase the swing set with the funds but then what? "The United States Navy Seabees volunteered to come in and install it," she said. You can spot those Navy engineers at Sixth District on August 18 and 19.
In the meantime, more volunteers are responding to help. On Sunday, members of the Seven Hills Church will be sanding, staining, and resealing the existing structure. And then in August, the United States Navy is coming in to help. Heather Abbott explained that she could purchase the swing set with the funds but then what? "The United States Navy Seabees volunteered to come in and install it," she said. You can spot those Navy engineers at Sixth District on August 18 and 19.
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LOTS MORE PHOTOS FROM THE EVENT, JUST CLICK THE LINK BELOW:
LOTS MORE PHOTOS FROM THE EVENT, JUST CLICK THE LINK BELOW:
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