By Jordan Studer
jstuder@wbcowqel.com
Many kids have run around and enjoyed Kid Kingdom, the spectacular playground at Aumiller Park in Bucyrus, but how many know how it was created? On Saturday morning a few members of the Ohio Child Conservation League (O.C.C.L.) Loving Our Children Kindly (L.O.C.K.) Mothers Club, gathered together outside by their masterpiece.
Back in 2001, the club, formed in 1997, had an idea that would change the lives of all the children that came looking for a fun and adventurous time. They noticed that there weren’t many items for kids to play on and of what was there, those women had played on when they were children.
President of the club at that time, Barb Glowaski, saw many similar playgrounds being built in parks all around. One day she saw the sign of the company, Leathers & Associates, that custom-designed those playgrounds according to what children wanted and imagined. Through a series of phone calls Glowaski made the right contacts and the idea was sealed.
Club members decided that this idea of building a custom-designed playground would be a great philanthropic project for them. At the time there were only 15 members, so the women knew they would need some more help to complete such an enormous task.
Two representatives of Leathers & Associates came to get the ball rolling. They went to surrounding elementary schools and asked kids to fantasize about what their dream playground would look like. They then asked them to draw it.
“They basically told kids, if you could design your playground, what would it look like? And they would have them draw it. Then they asked them what they would name it and they had a contest. It was kind of neat because they got all of the kids involved in it,” Glowaski explained.
At least 1,200 people in total assisted in the building. Companies, families, and community members all gave their time and energy to help in any way they could. Even some inmates from jail were allowed to pitch in. The little hands of children were, of course, assigned little tasks to help the process as well.
Little blocks with hand prints imprinted on them decorate the top of the swing set as well. Those hand prints are the prints of the children who participated in making their fantasy playground come to life.
The fence that encloses the playground, named “Kid Kingdom” by the children, also has a significance that many people may not realize. The fence pickets were sold as a fundraiser for the playground and whoever bought them got their names engraved down their own picket.
With all the hands helping, the playground was completed in a speedy five days, from April 25-29. Since this year marked the 15th reunion of the build, some members wanted to gather again to not only reminisce, but discuss something close to their hearts.
At the reunion, the women were to discuss the placement of a sapling tree in memory of one of their members who passed away a few years back, Suzanne Blank. Blank played a very large role in the community, and having eight children the women had no doubt that the tree should be placed near the playground. The question was where.
Through the years the club has had over 40 members. The members that gathered to reminisce about the time and memories they poured into the building of Kid Kingdom were Barb Glowaski, Laura Stuckey, Angela Miller, Beth Ford, Amy Burkett, Tonya Lohr, Vanessa Shutler, Mellissa Johnson, and Ronda Miller. It is quite clear that even though 15 years have gone by, the hearts of the ladies in the L.O.C.K. Mothers Club have continued to grow and show their continued love to others.