Students at Nicholson Elementary in Montgomery will be able to play on a new playground thanks to the West Aurora School District and a charitable partnership between the CarMax Foundation and national nonprofit KaBOOM!
“We know that many families have been challenged with how COVID-19 has made their lives different, from school and park closures, to limited interactions with family and friends, and even changes in how they go about their daily lives,” Nicholson Elementary School Principal Jen Bernal said in a news release.
“The new playground will be a welcome source of pride and play for the Nicholson community,” Bernal said.
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Nicholson Elementary students last spring participated in a virtual design day that encouraged their ideas for a “dream playground.” The new playground was designed with inspiration from their drawings, West Aurora School District officials said.
The CarMax Foundation in 2018 renewed its partnership with KaBOOM!, a nonprofit that works for playscape equity across the country, officials said.
“We know disasters and crises often exacerbate the inequities that communities are already experiencing, and in many communities, kids won’t have a playground to go back to once the COVID-19 crisis is over,” KaBOOM! CEO James Siegal said in the district’s news release.
“We must stop the playspace inequities from becoming even deeper after we get through this pandemic, giving every kid the chance to play and just enjoy being a kid,” he said.
The CarMax Foundation provided the majority of the funding for the playground through its national partnership with KaBOOM!, district officials said.
The playground apparatus is worth about $150,000. The playground is similar to one that was built at Nancy Hill Elementary in Aurora last year, district officials said.
The district invested approximately $10,000 for the demolition of the old playground at Nicholson Elementary and a few additions, said West Aurora School District Assistant Superintendent of Operations Angie Smith.
“We are incredibly grateful to KaBOOM!, the CarMax Foundation and the parents and students who helped keep this on the front burner and pushed it through,” Smith said. “It was a multi-year process to get this donation approved, but we look forward to students having a beautiful playground to enjoy for years to come.”
The playground was installed Aug. 18.
Linda Girardi is a freelance reporter for The Beacon-News.