Just as in the early days when a community would gather for a good ole’ fashioned barn raising, volunteers gathered at the Indus Recreation Centre on April 28th for a cause very similar. In this case, it was not a barn that was being built but a playground – a much needed playground. So with the desire for a playground, some community spirit and dedicated volunteers – a plan was put into motion.
Cori Gustavsen explained how the project got started. “The Bow Valley Agricultural Society (BVAS) had determined with the designers of the proposed addition to the current facility that the playground would have to be shuffled to allow room for more parking for the new proposed building that will be added to house the two new ice surfaces. The Indus Playschool was approached as they had fundraised and donated previously to the BVAS for the erection of the current playground on the site. The Indus Preschool was more than willing to take on the fundraising and organization of the playground as many of the components on the current one were starting to show wear and tear after being in use for over 15 years. The group researched playground equipment and determined what would be best suited, not only for the younger kids that attend the playschool but also the older kids that are at the arena for minor hockey, ringette and figure skating”.
With a $100,000 price tag, fundraising was going to be key in getting this playground completed. “Besides the fundraising that the Indus Preschool did the Bow Valley Agricultural Society received funds from grants through the Rockyview County Community Recreational Funding Grant and Alberta’s Community Facility Enhancement Program (CFEP) to help with paying for the project. Costs were also offset with the use of volunteers time donated to help organize the project and then to build the structure. Fundraising by the BVAS, like the current 50/50 $50,000 raffle (details can be found at indusrec.ca), and the various user groups at the Indus Recreation Centre help to fund these projects. Community support through these fundraising activities help not only the BVAS but their user groups to provide amenities and services to the patrons of the facility at a reasonable price”, added Gustavsen.
Once the funding was sorted out, organizers knew that a project of this size would be an all hands on deck. “The Indus Preschool presented the Bow Valley Agricultural Society with some options of equipment for the new structure. In their collaborations they determined that the structure by Blue Imp would best suit the needs of not only the Preschool but the other user groups that frequented the arena, ball diamonds and rodeo arena at the Indus Recreation Centre. To keep the cost of the playground down volunteers were needed so a call was put out to all the user groups to come on April 28th and 29th to erect the structure. Monique Williams, from the Indus Preschool Board, co-ordinated all the volunteers, delivery of the equipment, welders, heavy equipment, removal of the old structure, and gravel to keep the project organized over the two days. Baker Hughes provided 11 volunteers for the first day which was a huge asset in getting the structure and Baker Hughes also provided the lunch on the first day. There were 40 local volunteers that came out over the two days to help with putting carrying, lifting and erecting the structure and then following the direction of the Blue Imp employees to insure that the structure meets the CSA standards so that it will pass an inspection to be operational and finally move 150 tonnes of pea gravel to give the structure a safe base under it”, Gustavsen explained.
To some, a playground may sound like a very simple or non-essential thing to have in a community, but for the residents of Indus and in the surrounding area, it means much more. “Although the community of Indus is not large the Indus Recreation Centre services all of the Bow North Recreation District which includes all the rural area south of Glenmore from Calgary to the County of Wheatland. The minor sports groups have children that live in Langdon, Chestermere, Dalemead and the rural areas that surround these communities. The playground will be a benefit to all those children that come to the facility for their sporting practices and events or to attend the preschool or other community events that happen at the Recreation Centre”, said Gustavsen.
“There are many people that helped this project come to fruition but some groups that we would like to recognize include Baker Hughes, Buy-Low for providing food, Indus Preschool for all the planning, fundraising and volunteer hours to organize the new playground. The moving of the gravel was eased by the donation by Mark Muchka from the Calgary Corn Maze of his bobcat and time to operate it. The staff of the Bow Valley Agricultural Society that helped with building and cooking the breakfasts and lunches that fed all of the volunteers. Kudos to the ladies that provided child care services so others could spend time on the playground building. Finally the many volunteers that worked tirelessly over the two days to make the playground a reality”.
