As it is no doubt that summer is well under way, many families, friends, and couples look to the Plymouth Park Fun Zone to provide them with entertainment for those warm days. At the fun zone, citizens of Midland can enjoy picnics in the grass, a full playground with things such as tire swings and slides, eating area with benches, complete with a grill. The Fun Zone, which has been around since 1994, has not gone under many changes since it was built. In order to keep the Fun Zone maintained for future generations to come, many restorations are needed.
The Midland Area Community Foundation, who took the initiative to help the Fun Zone with its restoration projects, is starting to organize fundraisers to help with the cost of these projects. The project to restore the Fun Zone, which is projected to cost approximately $220,000, will be partly taken care of, but still leaves the goal of $105,000 for the community to get together and fundraise.
The DHS student leadership class, who heard about the deteriorating Fun Zone and sought out solutions to help raise money, is holding a penny drive from Thursday, May 8th, to Thursday, May 15th to help out with the cost of these restorations. The penny drive is a fundraiser that will be separated into grades, causing the freshman, sophomores, juniors, and seniors to compete against each other to have the most amount of pennies. The four jars, marked by grade, are located outside the main office near the cafeteria. Students will be able to put pennies in their own class jars and can sabotage other grades by putting dollar bills or other coins in their jars to decrease their score. For this week, grades will compete against each other, trying to get the highest score and the most pennies of any grade. The class with the most amount of pennies and the highest score will receive ice cream at the assembly of Friday the 16th.
DHS junior Lauren Dimerc, a member of student leadership, is passionate about the penny drive fundraiser and hopeful about the turnout.
“We put this fundraiser together to help the Fun Zone, because we want the community to be able to experience the Fun Zone,” Dimerc said. “Growing up in Midland, I spent lots of time at the Fun Zone, and I would feel like a part of my childhood is being taken away from me if anything happened to the Fun Zone. I have so many memories from the Fun Zone as a kid.”
As well, DHS junior Grace Hansen, who is also a member of student leadership, agrees that the penny drive will be a helpful way that students can contribute to the community, without asking them to make too much of a commitment.
“I like this fundraiser a lot,” Hansen said. “I went to the Fun Zone recently and noticed that all the wood is worn down and stuff. The Fun Zone is definitely in need of some restorations.”
Not only does the penny drive fundraiser help out the Fun Zone, it gives the community a way to get involved in something that they are passionate about.
