The moment all the kids were waiting for was even better than they imagined. And the adults there were a little misty-eyed, too.
Less than two years ago, a group of third graders noticed some of their friends couldn’t play with them on the playground at Bell Creek Intermediate. One student in a wheelchair, in particular, was relegated to just one place he could play and it was hard for him to get there through the rubber mulch.
As part of a project-based learning initiative in Mrs. Culler’s class, they presented the problem to their then principal, Donnie Phelps, who assured them the project was worthwhile, but the district didn’t have the funds. The group looked further and asked the Lions Club for funding during a shark-tank like event and the Lions’ Club came through.
Pledging $200K of their own money and a promise to help raise another $200K, the Lions Club, led by project manager Gregg Sparks, went to work researching accessible playground equipment, finding the best material possible to help students get to various places on the playground and making sure all the things that can’t be seen but matter – like proper drainage – were taken care of so the playground is usable whenever possible.
Less than two years later, on September 4, 2024, they finally got to try out the new playground as members of the class – now fifth graders – were the first to play on the officially opened equipment.
There were people working behind the scenes, too. A group of Bellbrook High School students with no ties to the project organized a 5K held in August which raised nearly $15K. A groundbreaking ceremony held in May – organized by the same trio of students – elicited a large donation when a local philanthropist saw an article written in the Dayton Daily News about the playground.
“I saw the article on a Sunday and I put it aside,” Diane Tobey said. “I looked at it again the next day and I kind of thought that was something I could do. We moved here five years ago and we really love it. I have two grandchildren in the district and I’ve brought them there to play on it a few times.”
The aforementioned trio of students, Alyssa Pernush, Emme Volmer and Lexie Holding were honored during the homecoming football game for their work in raising the funds.
There will be a sign dedication, Wednesday evening, Nov. 20 at 6 p.m. as the Lions Club recognizes all those who made the newly accessible playground a reality.