PAWS Playground Project

Overview:

Objective: To raise $125,000.000 to replace the outdated, and potentially unusable, wooden playground structure at WPS. This will include improving the drainage at the playground ( the structure is often underwater in the spring and therefor unusable), thereby ensuring an up-to-date, safe, and barrier free playground for the 275 students enrolled in WPS and the pre-school children from the surrounding community.

A school yard playground is a celebration of childhood, of family and of community. Willow Park School, in Leduc, Alberta, is in the process of replacing the old wooden playground structure located on the west side of the school, which has been deemed unsafe. This will take time, sweat and maybe even tears to complete but with your help it can be done. Fundraising for the replacement and construction of the new school playground is a task that has been embraced by a subcommittee of the Parents’ Association at Willow Park School (PAWS). A fundraising target of $125,000 has been set. The goal is to provide a fully functional, up-to-date, safe playground for the 275 students who attend Willow Park plus the children of the surrounding neighbourhood.

Willow Park School is a vibrant elementary school (K-6) located in the City of Leduc. Students are drawn from the Willow Park community as well as from the rural area surrounding Leduc. The school offers a full complement of programs to meet the needs of each student. . In addition to a strong academic program, the school offers Early Entry Preschool (PUF) , ESL support, Resource, and a District Academic Assistance Program (AAP). Leduc located 33km south of the Provincial capital Edmonton, is a vibrant young community of 24,000 residents with an average age of 35.

We have been raising funds through various fundraisers and business support. Funding continues to be a hurdle as many schools within the city and the surrounding area are competing for the same limited dollars. The Willow Park neighbourhood has a mixed demographic. This area features affordable housing, townhouses, mobile homes and a variety other starter to mid-level homes. The playground structure at Willow Park School provides hours of enjoyment and exercise for not only the 275 student in attendance, but for many other children from the surrounding community. The open fields behind Willow Park School are intended for multi-use. . The playground is a meeting place for the families, children and groups that use the soccer and baseball fields or running track. The proposed playground would provide an updated, more accessible, and safer structure that will be better integrated into the existing playground site. Our primary goal is to build a playground that will provide a lasting legacy to the students of Willow Park School, the children from the surrounding community, and to those who have donated their time and resources to ensure the success of this project..

With AVIVA’s support we can turn a out-dated, potentially unsafe playground area into an interactive, engaging space for students to develop their creativity, benefit from safe physical activities, and build a treasury of fond childhood playground memories.