(Sorry for the long post.....I just wanted to have this documented
since I use this blog like my journal/scrapbook).
Our neighborhood community park BEFORE.....
Our neighborhood community park AFTER!!!!!
So exciting!!!! We loved our neighborhood the second we found our house nine years ago. We loved that there was a park built just for the seventy houses that live in our association. But, I knew that some day we would need a new playground. I knew that my kids would outgrow the playground we did have, the moment they turned two. AND THEY DID! What a waste of park space.
I started attending the community association board meetings about seven years ago to see what I could do. Back then, everyone fought me down and told me there was no way it would happen. I continued to mention it off and on, but no one changed their mind about it.
Fast forward to three years ago when I became a board member. I started to mention it again to the new board members, three of which were what I call grumpy old men, and they pretty much told me to take a hike. We had no money for something like that.
I didn't care....I was going to find a way to make it happen. Maybe we could fundraise? Car wash? Who knew - I just knew that my kids needed a new place to play.
Just this year I brought it up AGAIN in a board meeting, and the right people were there at the right time. In fact, it was the secretary of our management company who was taking minutes at our meeting. She secretly told me in my ear after the meeting that we had an equipment fund of reserve money, set aside for the exact purpose of replacing old playground equipment. Apparently, since the community was buiilt in 1997, money from home owners' dues was set aside in this account, knowing that we would have to replace the old playground at some point in the future.
SERIOUSLY??? Why didn't anyone mention this any sooner? (I know why.....grumpy old men!) So....to make a very long story short....it took six more months of convincing the rest of the board, researching playground equipment and finding the right company with the right price to build it, designing what we wanted it to look like, rallying about 20 other moms from the community to come and fight with me at our open forum regarding the playground, and lots of old people upset with me in the community. Really....even though the money was there. It was amazing the day they showed up to take the old equipment out! We had our own little party at the Ferguson house. Three days later, our new playground was done and the kids wasted no time in going out to enjoy it! We are loving our new park!
All of the neighbors kids on our street rushed out to play the day it was finished!
And this is why I worked so hard....happy kids!
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