"Joy Personified!"
or
It Takes a Lot of Work to Build a Playground!

I was not scheduled to work on Saturday and tried to stay away while I continue to recover from a respiratory illness.  But the attraction to see the playground being born was simply too great.  I drove to the church and stood at the fence merely to bask in the joy of it all.  And what joy!  Like the proverbial well-oiled machine, church members and Baylor students and professional contractors came together to create space to play in what had the day before been merely space.  Who knew?  Who knew that these ordinary people could first raise the money to build a playground and then could turn around and actually build it.  Joy personified.
—Loeen Irons

See the Waco Trib story here!

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Our Church, Our Children, Our Future
 
Since the fall of 2004, a group of church members has been involved in thinking about and planning for an updated and safe playground for our children. We dreamed of transforming the play area adjacent to the church into a place that welcomes children and provides for their physical, emotional, and spiritual needs to run, climb, explore, and enjoy the beautiful green space which surrounds our church.
 
There were times when thinking and talking about this playground seemed to be an impossible dream. The hurdles were many. A deteriorating wooden fence needed replacement, the concrete support walls needed to be reinforced, and the eroding hillside graded. The cost of playground equipment is expensive, and the questions kept being asked, “How will we pay for this?” “Do we need this playground?” “Would we have this playground if we didn’t have the Children’s Center?”
 
This morning as our congregation gathered outside for worship on a glorious autumn day, those questions of an impossible dream seemed so long ago. As we faced the almost-completed playground with the beautiful new structures, and reflected on the coming together of our entire congregation to fulfill this dream, Penny Eden's phrase “The Church that Love Built” came to mind. Truly over the past month and a half, our congregation has demonstrated a determination of purpose that has surprised many. We not only voted to proceed with plans for a new playground, we raised the money to do so! In a 48-hour period, church members gathered to unload an 18-wheeler of supplies for this project. For two sunny days, teams of workers young and not-so-young dug holes, hammered in pilings, mixed cement, shoveled rocks, sand, dirt, and wood fiber, struggled with the huge sun shade frames, and participated in constructing climbing and sliding structures. There was harmony and laughter as friends worked together and shared stories and skills. Three onsite experts gave clear directions, while Donovan McNeil rejected coffee breaks and kept the teams moving. Jim Fau expertly moved the front loader round and around and back and forth, and the kitchen team kept the water flowing along with snacks, sandwiches, and fruit. By Sunday afternoon, all was completed that could be completed for the day.

This weekend another sun shade structure will be erected and additional sidewalks will be added. In the spring we hope to plant shrubs to attract butterflies and birds, and we look forward to seeing radishes and lettuce planted by our young children growing in the sun.
 
The entire congregation deserves an individual thank you for participating in and supporting this endeavor. Please accept this heartfelt “Thank You.”  Without your support the playground could not have become a reality. Additional thanks are extended to the original Task Force and the Fundraising Committee and Ray Cannon who chaired the successful campaign, and to playground committee members Beth Raymond, Karyn Miller, and Donovan McNeil.
 
Appreciation and thanks to Donovan, whose previous experience with playground construction provided the expertise needed to bring the plans to life. Without his persistence and know-how, we would probably still be in the dreaming phase.
 
 Our children are our future!
 
 Faith Kopplin, Chair, Playground Committee

I keep finding excuses to drive by and look at the new playground. I smile each time, remembering something funny that Ray Cannon or Tom Hanks said, or laughing about Jan Williams’ inability to bake homemade bread (according to Lynn). I’m so glad I was involved in this. I’m so glad everyone was involved with this. What a wonderful, eclectic group God has assembled at Lake Shore!
—Karyn Miller

As a former kindergarten director at Lake Shore Baptist Church Children's Center, I'd like to thank everyone who took part in making the playground “build” a success.  From the task force in 2004 to the committees, boards, and financial planners in 2007 as well as participants in the build, everyone pitched in to make this project a success.  Although it's still a work in progress, we're close to seeing this dream come true.  A special “thank you” to Donovan McNeil who has empowered this mission from start to finish. 
—Beverly Hill

It was unexpectedly rewarding (working with Fontaine was okay too). Kerry Irons

As the day closed Sunday Kerry Irons and I were standing just looking and he said, “How neat is this?”                                           —Bruce Neatherlin

 

Well, I learned one more thing on Saturday. If I’m ever again asked to put together picnic tables and benches, I couldn’t assemble a more congenial team than David Mosley, Deb Vardiman, Ray Cannon, Bruce Neatherlin, Dan McNeil, and Buddy Prather. Not only did we enjoy the task, but then we got to sit on our product and watch the others work!                           —Judy Prather

 

As Preston Dyer would shout, “Whoo! Hooo!”

   —Jan Williams

 

I have never been affiliated with a congregation with so much energy, determination, dedication and all with never ending smiles!! I am proud to belong to Lake Shore Baptist Church.

—Beth Raymond