Volunteers push through wet weather to build accessible playground

Published 5:15 pm Thursday, February 21, 2019

Despite the rainy weather, volunteers have continued to build Jeannie’s Place at Planet Playground, a playground designed for children of all abilities.

“Obviously we’ve had adverse weather conditions,” Julia Norman, the project coordinator for the City of Meridian, said. “But we’ve had a tremendous amount of support from the community.”

Norman said that project supervisors planned to work through to the ribbon cutting on Sunday and then assess if more volunteer days would be needed.

“Right now it’s full-steam ahead to Sunday,” Norman said.

The playground will feature a steel slide for children with cochlear implants as well as a wheelchair accessible swing and merry-go-round.

Volunteers are encouraged to reach out and sign-up for shifts ahead of time with jeanniesplacevolunteer@gmail.com but walk-up volunteers are welcome. Volunteers must be at least 14 years of age to help and at least 18 years old to operate a power tool. 

The playground is located at Meridian’s Northeast Recreation Park, just east of Highway 39N.