Grand Rapids — Ninety-plus-degree heat and the blazing midmorning sun didn’t stop almost 200 community members from coming together to help construct a space for students and neighbors to enjoy for years to come.
Over the course of three sunbaked days in mid-July — in the midst of a sweltering heatwave — around 180 volunteers pitched in to assemble a brand-new, fully accessible playground at Gerald R. Ford Academic Center.
The project was spearheaded by the Grand Rapids Public Schools Foundation, in cooperation with the district and several supporters. It was funded in part by Reimagine GRPS bond dollars, and through foundation-led fundraising efforts. The total cost was around $350,000, with about $150,000 coming from the bond and $200,000 raised through donations and sponsorships, said Stephanie Andrews, foundation president and CEO.
GRPS is in the process of renovating and upgrading several of its playgrounds this summer, and the foundation decided to organize a community build for a school that needed an extra bit of love.
“We wanted an opportunity for volunteers to come together with (the) community to do something impactful for kids that you could see, and a playground’s a perfect way to do that,” Andrews said. “We were able to pick this school, which I think is fortuitous in the year of the county’s 250th birthday.”
Andrews also noted that, coincidentally, construction started the day after Gerald R. Ford’s birthday.
Time, Sweat & Passion
The old Ford playground had reached the end of its lifespan, and was taken down earlier in the summer to make room for something new.
The foundation led an effort to recruit volunteers to assist with the build, knocking on neighbors’ doors and reaching out to community partners. The volunteer crew included staff from partners at Mercantile Bank, Lake Michigan Credit Union and more.
GRPS Board Secretary Amber Kilpatrick, who was on hand during the build, said she enjoyed seeing a “cross-section of caring individuals” work together to “create something beautiful” for students and the community at large, noting that the space will be open to everyone in the neighborhood.
“It just shows how much love there is for GRPS,” Kilpatrick said. “You can see all the folks that are here today — giving their time, their sweat, their passion — to build something that will be available to our scholars and the community for … a generation, and I think that’s really exciting. I’m hoping folks realize their impact here today.”
That impact is already being felt in the surrounding neighborhood. Just days after the project wrapped up, twins and GRPS fifth-graders Jermany Janay and Jeromy Lane, who live nearby, were out enjoying a summer afternoon on the new equipment. They raced each other up the chain ladder, climbed a spinning rope tower and tackled the monkey bars.
“From the first time I saw it, I liked it,” said Jermany Janay of the new playground. “It has way more things to do and I like that I don’t have to pay (to use it). … It feels good because now the kids that go to the school have a funner park to play on.”
More Upgrades Planned
Alex Smart, executive director of facilities and operations for GRPS, said the community build represents the district’s commitment to accessibility, and the degree to which the community supports that goal.
“Getting people out here when it’s as hot as it is, it shows their love for the community, their love for the school, and we’re very much appreciative of that,” Smart said.
In addition to Ford’s play area, the district is also in the process of upgrading and improving the accessibility of playgrounds at César E. Chávez Elementary, Kent Hills Elementary and Martin Luther King Jr. Leadership Academy.
“We consider playgrounds outdoor learning,” Smart said. “Social interaction is extremely important. We want the community to know that we’re serious about this, and we’re serious about creating accessible playgrounds.”
Andrews, with the GRPS Foundation, said she hopes the recent community build will be the first of many.
“We’d like to do one a year for a few years to give all the playgrounds a beautiful upgrade throughout the district,” she said.
Reporter Beth Heinen Bell contributed to this story.
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