Volunteers help build kid-designed playground at William Marvin Bass Elementary School

LYNCHBURG, Va. (WFXR) — The playground is where many childhood memories are created. From playing tag, and swinging across the monkey bars, students at the William Marvin Bass Elementary School and children in the Hill City will soon create memories of their own in a new playground.

On Sept. 30, approximately, 75 volunteers from the Virginia Foundation for Healthy Youth, Lynchburg City Schools, and William Marvin Bass Elementary School joined to start constructing a new playground for children.

After receiving a grant from KABOOM!, the idea was brought to life.

In 2022, KABOOM! launched an initiative to End Playspace Inequity. The initiative’s mission was to end playspace inequity across the country. The nonprofit’s goal is also to make sure every kid can experience several physical, social, and mental health benefits of playing regardless of someone’s background and where they live.

Therefore, students at William Marvin Bass Elementary School were able to help come up with a design for the new playground.

“They had some very interesting things they would like to put in the playground, cooling stations, was were very important for the students, and shade, ziplines so hopefully they will be able to see of the things they identified in the playground,” said Monica Hendricks, Principal at William Marvin Bass Elementary School.

On Saturday, volunteers grabbed their tools and worked together to finish the project. Groups installed slides, and monkey bars, and even helped plant trees.

(Left) Volunteers helping put up the monkey bars. (Right) Volunteers working on the playground. (Photo Courtesy: William Marvin Bass Elementary School)

“This playground will serve a neighborhood that is generally underserved by access to playspace and the new playground will provide an opportunity for the rest of the city to connect with Bass Elementary School and allow us to demonstrate servant leadership for the greater Lynchburg community through our Bass campus,” said Dr. Reid Wodicka, Deputy Superintendent of Lynchburg City Schools