Mr. Mills said approximately $90,000 was raised, with Let Them Be Kids matching that amount dollar for dollar. He added he estimates the west end playground would now be worth a quarter of a million dollars.
“Pretty much everything we have has been donated or all the time has been volunteered,” he said. “People believed in what they were doing. We’ve had support in things that we’ve did, but I think this is perhaps the biggest project that we have ever done.”
Mr. Mills said he spoke with the two Let Them Be Kids engineers who were on site and they said this is perhaps one of the biggest projects they’ve done so far - when it come to the two fields - in Canada.
“As a committee, we were extremely pleased how organized it was, how well it went over and how supportive everybody was in the community.”
He said the project had a lot of support, and not just from the community in which the playgrounds were built.
“It’s not just about Bishop’s Falls, it’s about Exploits Valley, because without the support of Grand Falls-Windsor and Botwood businesses, this wouldn’t be reality,” Mr. Mills said. “We’re from a community of 3,500 people. We can’t do this alone. That’s what we have to think about. We are one region. It’s overwhelming support in the Exploits Valley area.”
He said an added touch is that everything seen at both sites was chosen and designed by the children at the elementary school in Bishop’s Falls.
“This is what they did, and we’re hoping that they will take care of it,” he said. “It’s nice to put it there but they have to take pride in it and take care of it.
I passed along there yesterday (Sunday) just to see, and there were 40 people, including seniors walking the trail while the kids were playing on the equipment. That’s something we haven’t seen in Bishop’s Falls for years.”
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