Volunteers Bring New Life to Park with Addition of Children's Playground.

[Photos by Lisa Kauffman]

by Lesley Misko

For years, children visiting Bechtelsville Park had nothing more than a handful of swings, a basketball court, and open space to keep them occupied.

Today, the scene is very different.

Children run across climbing structures, race toward a very tall tube slide, and swing alongside parents on equipment designed to bring families together. Their laughter fills a corner of the park that stood without a playground for years.

For the volunteers who worked to make it happen, the new playground represents far more than a place to play. It is the culmination of years of fundraising, grant applications, planning meetings, volunteer labor, and community support.

"It was something that the community needed," said Kim Parish, secretary/treasurer of the Bechtelsville Recreation Association. "These two girls being young with young children saw the need and wanted it for their kids as well. It just kind of took off from there."

The "two girls" Parish refers to are Danielle Bartman, chairperson of the Bechtelsville Recreation Association, and Alyssa Zander, the organization's co-chairperson. The two mothers joined the nonprofit board shortly before Parish came aboard, and together the three women became the driving force behind the playground project.

The Bechtelsville Recreation Association serves as the fundraising arm for the borough park. While the borough applies for grants and provides support, the association took the lead in developing the project, raising money, and coordinating efforts.

The three women quickly discovered they worked well together. "As I was saying the other day, it's like the ball—we tried to get the ball rolling, and once it was rolling, one of us would keep it going," Parish said. "If one was busy and couldn't stay at it, the other one would."

Their vision came from a simple reality: children in Bechtelsville no longer had a playground. Years ago, the remains of a previous playground was removed and never replaced. Parish said she is unsure exactly why it was taken out, though it may have been related to safety or liability concerns. Whatever the reason, generations of children had no real  safe play options.

"There was hardly anything to do there," she said. "There was never anything anymore for the kids to play on other than those couple little swings."

From the beginning, the board wanted more than a basic playground.

The equipment was designed for children ages 5 through 12 and includes features that make it accessible to children with different abilities. That emphasis was especially important to Bartman, whose daughter has special needs. 

"That was Danielle's primary focus," Parish said. "This wasn't going to just be a little playground that only some kids could go on. If we're going to do it, let's try to focus that we can put something in that's going to be well received and support a lot of the different ages and abilities."

The effort required a tremendous amount of fundraising. The association sold advertising space on fencing around the park's courts, organized events, and sought donations from local businesses. Volunteers also pursued grant funding, ultimately securing three state grants.

A major turning point came when Martin Stone Quarries agreed to support the project. The company contributed $100,000 toward the playground and also provided materials needed for construction. "If we wouldn't have gotten Martin's donation, we wouldn't be where we are yet," Parish said. "That was a big thing. That pushed us over."

Additional support came from local businesses and community members, including a $5,000 contribution from Campbell's and assistance from numerous volunteers who donated equipment, labor, and expertise.

The finished playground represents an investment of more than $300,000. By relying on volunteers for site preparation and finishing work, the association estimates it saved approximately $50,000.

"Oh yeah, absolutely," Parish said when asked about community support. "The volunteers—and small businesses know a lot of other small businesses. I've reached out to anybody and everybody that I knew and said, 'If we need help with this, that or the other, do you have equipment or time that you could help us out?'"

Among those she credits for helping bring the project to completion are Borough Council President Jim Powers, who helped oversee site preparation and construction logistics, and Roadmaster Thomas Burgers, a longtime volunteer who assisted throughout the process.

Now that the playground is complete, Parish enjoys watching families discover it.

One feature in particular has become an immediate favorite: an extremely tall enclosed tube slide reached by crossing a net-style climbing structure.  "I really think that the kids love that we have such a tall slide," she said. "It's amazing how tall until when you see it off the paper and into the ground."

Another feature that caught her attention is a parent-and-child swing that allows an adult and young child to face one another while swinging together." It's amazing what they come up with," Parish said with a laugh. 

The response from families has exceeded expectations. "Every day we go by, Dave and I are like, 'Okay, how many kids are playing on it today?'" she said. She believes families from Boyertown and neighboring communities are visiting the park to experience the new playground.

Like many public spaces, the playground faces the possibility of vandalism. But Parish is optimistic that increased use of the park will help protect it. "We're hoping and praying that the community is looking out for it," she said.

For Parish, Bartman and Zander, the playground stands as a tribute to what can happen when residents decide to invest in their community. "I don't think people really understand," Parish said. "A lot of people think it's the borough. Everybody lumps the borough into a political entity, but it's not. This is three people that just have a normal life like everybody else and volunteer our time. There's no reward. It's just gratitude that you get."

That gratitude is visible every day in the children climbing, sliding, swinging, and playing at Bechtelsville Park— exactly the outcome the volunteers envisioned when they first began.

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