Sunday, May 28, 2006

BY SYDNEY SCHWARTZ

Copyright © 2006 Republican-American

ROXBURY — Every time they go to the Hurlburt Park playground on Apple Lane, Stacey Kennedy's four children end up with splinters.

Two have fallen off a playground bridge and a friend's daughter fell seven feet off the tall slide, hitting the back of her head and landing face first in the mulch.

"It's just dangerous," said Kennedy, whose children are 8, 4, 2½ and six months. "It's a disaster waiting to happen."

The decade-old wooden equipment was splitting, the cedar posts were rotting on the inside and there were exposed nails and gaping holes big enough for youngsters to slip through, she said.

So Kennedy, a pediatric nurse practitioner, decided to do something about it.

After joining the Recreation Commission two years ago, she set out to renovate the playground and bring it up to code.

"Over the year's it's just become more dilapidated," she said. "I finally said, 'Something has to be done.'"

Kennedy contacted playground companies, visited parks around the region and requested money from the Board of Finance.

She got about $30,000 in the town budget, $25,000 from a state grant and $11,000 from the Apple Lane Fund — which consists of funds from the Tractor Parade, Poker Run and other Recreation Commission events, she said.

She decided on an Uxbridge, Mass.-based equipment company called Playworld that had the right colors and warranties.

She ordered a climbing wall, bouncing pegs, and six new swings, including one that's handicapped-accessible, as well as two playscapes — one for 2- to 5-year-olds with two slides and panels of musical instruments and one for 5- to 12-year-olds with four slides, tunnels and bridges with monkey bars underneath.

"I was just looking into making it a safer area for our community," Kennedy said. "The safety codes have just changed so much in the last 10 years that the equipment now is much safer.

The town crew took down the existing equipment last week and the new equipment will be delivered in early June. Volunteers will install the new equipment from June 9 to 11.

Kennedy is hoping for at least 40 to 50 volunteers a day throughout the weekend. Her friend, Erika Ketchum, whose son has also fallen off equipment, has been reaching out to local restaurants and supermarkets for breakfast, snacks and lunch donations.

Sponsors include Roxbury Market, DiPalma's Pizza, McDonalds, Stop & Shop, Friendly's Ice Cream, Dunkin Donuts and Pepsi-Cola. Wal-Mart will also be sending employees to help assemble the playground, along with ice, coolers and utensils, Ketchum said.

"Should be some nice community spirit," Kennedy said.

And next on tap, she said, will be the park at Booth Free School — especially since money was cut from the Region 12 school renovation plans last month. She said one student went to the Emergency Room last year because of splinters.

"It's as bad, if not worse," she said.

"It just has to be done over there."

If you go... The Roxbury Recreation Commission will build the new Apple Lane playground equipment from 7:30 a.m. to dusk June 9, 10 and 11. There will be food and refreshments. The commission is hoping for about 50 volunteers a day to rebuild the park. For more information, call Stacey Kennedy at (860) 210-9818.

Playground Build Weekend sponsors include: Roxbury Market, DiPalma's Pizza, Jordan's Restaurant, Stop & Shop Supermarket, Friendly's Ice Cream, Villarina's Pasta & More and Julio's Restaurant in Southbury; Big Y Supermarket, Windmill Diner, Domino's Pizza, Dunkin Donuts and Wal-Mart in New Milford; Pepsi-Cola, McDonald's Corp., Berkshire Foods in Danbury, G.W. Tavern in Washington and Costco in Brookfield