Rebecca's Playground: Next Gen
at St. Paul Lutheran
Rebecca's Playground was built in 2002 in memory of Rebecca Johnson, a beautiful 6-year-old girl who sadly passed away from brain cancer. The Lanesville Community rallied and raised $30,000 to fund the project, but it didn't stop there - 120 community volunteer builders showed up and made the playground a reality. This sweet playground included swings, state-of-the-art play structure, benches and a little lobster boat "The Miss Rebecca".
Since it's inauguration, the playground has served the Lanesville Community and the Annisquam PreSchool (located at St. Paul) well; but as time marches on, needs change and structures wear. St. Paul is looking to the Lanesville and broader community to help us update and modernize the playground.
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If you are interested in helping us achieve this goal, please take this quick survey to help us understand the needs of the community. The survey includes a section for adults and a separate youth survey - so involve your kids!
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We look forward to hearing from you and how we can serve you through this special space.
IT TAKES A VILLAGE...
St. Paul is once again reaching out to the community for their input and involvement for Rebecca's Playground: Next Gen! We have been blessed to have been on the receiving end of God's blessing of community. The picture above is the community hard at work during the initial building of the playground. It was covered by the Gloucester Daily Times on 9/28/2002 in an article titled "Big hearts build Rebecca's Playground". Check back to this section for updates as we build Next Gen!
REMEMBERING REBECCA
In 2002 Saint Paul Lutheran Church, the Johnson family, and four Lanesville mothers called on the support of neighbors and friends to build this playground in memory of Rebecca Johnson, a beloved child in our community who died of a brain tumor in 2000 at the age of six. Rebecca was athletic, spirited, and loved to laugh! How fitting to dedicate this playground to Rebecca, and to welcome children throughout Lanesville to enjoy this special place together - a place built with community love and caring. A place for all our children to enjoy the ‘transformative power of play’!
TED TALK ON PLAYGROUND DEVELOPMENT
Click the image above to view a TedTalk with Sarah Werner Konradi as she discusses the evolution of the American playground and the benefits of returning to "natural" play.