BARK RIVER, Mich. (WZMQ) – The Delta Menominee Heart of the North Lions Club is working to make play more accessible for all children in Bark River.
Bark River’s park first opened in the 1940s. While the current equipment might not be quite that old, Lions Club charter member Jane Lanaville says it is past its prime.
“It’s dated a little bit,” she said. “Our thought was to update it and make it more inclusive so more kids of different abilities could come here and enjoy it.”
According to Lanaville, there are no inclusive parks within a 50-mile radius of Bark River.
The Lions Club plans to replace everything except for the spiral slide, the flagpole, and the benches by the flagpole. The new park will include equipment like sensory panels, swings with buckles, and indoor/outdoor flooring to make the park inclusive of each child.
“We went to a park and it had inclusive pieces, but it had tire chips in it, and you could absolutely not navigate it with a wheelchair or crutches,” said Lanaville. “The more we talked about what we were doing, we thought, ‘It’s time to upgrade to what the other kids need.”
The total cost of the equipment and flooring is $132,000. Thanks to a matching grant from the Lions Club International Foundation, the Bark River club has to raise just $66,000 of that, as well as $10,000 to replace the existing fence.
The project could involve the removal of a couple of trees to move the fence. However, the club plans to put in new trees with educational plaques.
“Right now, we’ve got right around 36 thousand dollars raised so far,” Lanaville said.
This weekend, the Lions Club will host two fundraisers to increase that amount. They will hold a brat sale at Massie’s Country Market on Saturday, July 29, as well as a spaghetti feed at the Highland Golf Club on Sunday, July 30. Both events run from 11:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m.
Anyone who would like to donate but cannot attend a fundraiser can donate virtually through Venmo to @BRPark2023 or PayPal at Paypal.Me/BRPark2023. The QR code here will take you to Venmo.
Lanaville says the Lions Club is grateful for the community’s support in making the Bark River Park accessible for children of all ages and all abilities.
“Our motto is ‘we serve,’ and anything we can do to make things safe for children is worth our time and our effort,” she said. “The idea that we can do something for our community is phenomenal for us.”
The Lions Club’s goal is to raise the necessary funds by the end of August. They hope to install new equipment in September.
