Lake Park Playvilion receives facelift

NewPointe Church chooses a day each year as the church’s Community Impact Day. On that day, instead of going to church, they choose projects in the community to work on. Sunday, July 28 was their Community Impact Day and one of their projects was Lake Park and the playground there.

Amy Hasseman and Tiffany Swigert volunteered to lead the group that chose to work on the Playvilion. More volunteers worked on a large landscaping project near the aqueduct bridge and another group did some work at Echoing Hills.

“It was a great project because the park needs volunteers like this that they don’t have enough staff to tackle. The playground was built 27 years ago and it is really showing its age. It will need to be replaced in the near future due to the treated lumber exceeding its life, but we were able to repair, replace and give it a little more life,” Hasseman said.

She shared that crews worked on replacing boards, rebuilding the dragon and building blocks, reattaching and replacing hose on the chain obstacles, painting, spreading sand and mulch and trimming weeds and trees, among other improvements.

“Thanks to a maintenance fund at the Coshocton Foundation, we were able to buy the supplies needed to make these improvements. We were also blessed by many community businesses that donated things. Coshocton Tire donated tires for the tire obstacle, McWane donated hose for the chain obstacle, Coshocton Lumber and Auer Ace discounted materials, and Auer Ace donated a new bike rack. Baird Concrete donated sand and Dominos Pizza provided lunch for all of the workers,” Hasseman said.

Swigert said Lake Park is an incredible asset to the community and they are thankful to have it in Coshocton. “NewPointe started Community Impact Day years ago as a way to show our love for the community and its people. We believe that church goes way beyond the walls of a building and what better way to show that then to get outside and serve.”

“We had 96 people signed up for the Playvilion project and landscaping and we had many more join us for the day that didn’t get to register. We had well over 100 people working along side each other in fellowship. It was a beautiful morning,” Swigert said.

Tammi Rogers, director of the Coshocton Park District, said, “I’ll tell you – that Sunday, seeing everyone showing up – easily 70 people from every age group, I was speechless. It means the world to me, the park board, park staff and Friends of the Parks to see that kind of commitment to making our park better. Volunteers came with smiles, enthusiasm, and encouragement. I witnessed groups problem solving and coming up with solutions together. Even the little ones were put to work handing out cold bottles of water. It was so well-organized and a lot was accomplished in a mere three hours.”

Rogers said it was serendipity. From the first conversation with Jerod Boone from the church stopping by the park office, to the first meeting with Hasseman and Swigert, the project took on a life of its own. Power washing was scheduled and volunteers were looking for donations and materials.

Rogers said, “A huge thank you to NewPointe Church members for sharing their time, their abilities and their commitment to making our world a better place.” She also wanted to thank Hasseman and Swigert, the businesses who donated materials, Sherry Kirkpatrick, Terri Owens, Kathy Milligan, the park board and Friends of the Park for their constant support of the park. “Thank you to Andy, Dave, Larry and Shawn, our maintenance crew, for plugging away each and every day. Thank you to Bob Pell and the Coshocton Foundation Distribution Committee for the ease in which the funds were able to be received and their excitement for this project.”

“Our park is used by hundreds of people every day. Anyone can pick up a piece of trash when they see it. It makes a difference. Be mindful of what you are leaving behind – find a trash receptacle. We have a lot of great people that take note and do let us know about issues and that is appreciated. It’s our park – we all want it to be a great place and we’re happy to work together to make that happen,” Rogers said.

Category: People & Places