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Main Street Lincoln had restored the
park’s fountain, created a new entrance archway and planted many
flower beds, but the old playground equipment was still there.
"I thought, ‘This is a beautiful park,
but there’s no place for kids to play,’" Reese said. Then he went
home and made a few phone calls.
Today, safe and colorful new equipment
invites children of many ages to come to the park. A big red
firetruck offers sliding boards and climbing activities. Four swings
have soft, leather-like seats and can accommodate special seats for
children with disabilities.
[Photos by Joan Crabb]
[With
a little encouragement, a toddler enjoys the slide at the new Scully
Park playground.]
A huge sandbox holds a couple of
diggers that can be used by children in wheelchairs as well as by
more active youngsters. A little red firehouse can be whatever
children imagine it to be.
One of the first calls Reese made was
to Betty Verderber, a mother and grandmother who, Reese knew, would
be interested in providing equipment accessible to children with
disabilities. Verderber, along with Michelle Schick, Marge Aper, Kay
Furman and Dick Logan, who was then chairman of buildings and
grounds for the Logan County Board, became Main Street Lincoln’s
playground committee. They’ve been assisted by Jan Schumacher, Main
Street’s board president.
"We researched this for more than two
years," Aper said. "We wanted to find age-appropriate playground
equipment that meets all federal standards for children with
disabilities."
They ended up working with a company
called Grounds for Play. Because Lincoln has always been a railroad
town, the committee originally thought of having the major piece in
phase one be a train engine, but after Sept. 11, 2001, they decided
to go with the firetruck and dedicate it to 9-11 victims and rescue
workers.
Most of the new equipment was set up on
a recent Saturday by volunteers from the Logan County Board, the
community and a particularly helpful group from New Wine Fellowship.
About 20 volunteers worked from 7 a.m. until late in the afternoon
assembling the equipment, digging holes, pouring concrete and
putting down wood fiber ground cover. Volunteers who worked on the
project don’t have to wonder if children are using it. All they need
to do is drive by.
"I’ve seen 25 or so kids there every
time I went by," said Dick Logan.
[Three-year-old
Lane likes to swing her way.]
Mothers who brought their children to
Scully Park on a recent September day were enthusiastic about the
new equipment.
"It’s so much nicer than those rusty
old swings," one mother said.
"My children have been begging me to
bring them here ever since they saw the new equipment being put up,"
another said.
"We come two or three times a week when
the weather’s nice," said a mother who operates a small day-care
business.
The project has been funded by private
donations and a $10,000 Illinois FIRST grant, which came through
Main Street Lincoln with the help of former state Sen. Bob Madigan.
Donations from many, many volunteers made up the rest, Logan said.
Altogether, the cost for this phase has been about $25,000.
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With phase one so well received, the
committee is beginning work on phase two. Plans for the complete
playground are on display in the rotunda of the Logan County
courthouse. All playground equipment will be in the park’s south
quadrant.
The next phase will include a sand wall
on one side of the sandbox, which will give youngsters the chance to
pour sand through holes in the wall, Verderber said.
Another unit will be a toddler
structure for ages 2 to 4, with a climber, sound cylinders and a
slide. The current firetruck is geared for ages 4 through 8,
although many younger children like it, too.
Still another unit, with a tube slide
and a climbing wall, will be appropriate for 8- to 12-year-olds.
In the immediate future, Verderber
wants to see a ramp built that will allow children in wheelchairs to
pull themselves up into the firetruck and also ramps to allow
wheelchairs to get over the wooden curb and into the firetruck area.
In the meantime, fund-raising is
starting for phase two of the project. On Saturday, Oct. 5, a
fund-raiser called Cosmic Bowling will be held at Logan Lanes from 7
to 9 p.m. Donation is $10 per person.
"The sooner we get more funds, the
sooner we can put more equipment in," Verderber said.
Reese, who says he wants to see the
people who have done most of the work get the credit, considers the
playground a wonderful project.
"I would like to see the park
development continue. I’d eventually like to see a shelter for
picnics and some kind of restroom facilities," he said.
[The plan for the complete Scully Park playground is on display in
the rotunda of the Logan County Courthouse.]
A list of donors compiled by Logan
includes the following businesses, organizations, church groups,
schools and individuals:
Businesses include Brandt’s Arcade
Cafe, Harris-Hodnett Insurance, Kenshalo-Rousey Home Improvement,
Manning and McQuellon Rental Properties, Charron’s Auto Repairs, MKS
Jewelers, Keystone Risk Management, McEntire’s Home Appliance,
Independence Holding Company, Logan County Title Company, Central
Illinois Bank, Saint-Gobain Containers, Guzzardo’s Italian Villa,
Fricke-Calvert-Schrader Funeral Home, State Bank of Lincoln, Graue,
Inc., and attorneys Thomas W. Funk, John Gehlbach and Darrell Klink.
Organizations include Lincoln Elks 914,
United Cerebral Palsy of Illinois, Lincoln Junior Woman’s Club,
Lincoln Woman’s Club, Beta Sigma Phi, Lincoln Rotary Club,
Lincolnite Auxiliary 2708, F.O.E. and Lincoln Firefighters Local
3092.
Church and school groups include the
Holy Family Society, Episcopal Church Women, Knights of Columbus,
Carroll Catholic Student Council, Lincoln Community High School pom
pon squad, and Lincoln Community High School student government.
Individuals contributing to phase one
include Pat and Debbie Singleton, Bob Verderber, Warren and Jean
Peters, Louis and Michelle Schick, Martha Neitzel, Thomas Harris,
and Richard Sumrall.
Contributions to phase two can be made at the Main Street Lincoln
office, the county board office or to any committee member.
[Joan Crabb]
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"This new facility will help us deal
with a growing problem in the state’s prisons — a female inmate
population that is increasing faster than other groups," said Gov.
Ryan. "From the rehabilitation services available to the women
housed here to the immediate economic benefits for the community,
building this prison right here in Pembroke Township is a good and
necessary investment for the state."
The 1,800-bed facility is scheduled to
open early in 2005 and will employ nearly 300 workers during
construction. When the prison is operational, it will have a $54
million budget and employ approximately 750 correctional officers
and staff members.
The Hopkins Park site was chosen in
1999 after a selection process determined that it was best suited to
the Department of Corrections
criteria, including close proximity to Cook County and the
surrounding community’s economic needs.
Pembroke Township is one of the state’s
poorest communities, and this new prison will help bring additional
investment to the community. Also, it is important to have the
women’s facility close to Cook County because about 65 percent of
Illinois’ female inmate population is from Cook and the collar
counties and 81 percent of those women have children. The Hopkins
Park site has direct access from Chicago via Interstate 57, and bus
and train services are available in nearby Kankakee.
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"This facility will put women inmates
within reach of various social services and educational
opportunities in the Chicago area," added Gov. Ryan.
The facility was designed by HDR
Architects of Chicago to best suit the needs of the Department of
Corrections to operate the multi-level security prison. The entire
site is approximately 140 acres, with 40 acres within the secure
perimeter. One cell house will house the reception and
classification area; one cell house will be used for segregation,
condemned and protective custody; and the other three general
population cell houses have been designed for use at any security
level. There will also be a mental health care facility with 60
beds.
Funding for
the facility was originally appropriated in fiscal 2000 in the
amount of $88.3 million, and an additional $4.47 million was
appropriated in fiscal 2003. The federal government has committed
$11 million toward the construction.
[Illinois
Government News Network
press release]
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