Playground pops up
in Liberty Street Park
Volunteers join forces
JERRY WOLKOWITZ Volunteers carry a swing set to its permanent spot at Liberty Street Park, Freehold Borough, during Saturday’s KaBoom! playground construction project.
for KaBoom! project
in Freehold Borough
By dick metzgar
Staff Writer
Kim Handy of Lakewood puts all of her efforts into helping to build a playground at the Liberty Street Park, Freehold Borough, during Saturday’s KaBoom! project.
Saturday’s KaBOOM project to erect a state-of-the-art playground at Liberty Street Park, Freehold Borough, was a rousing success, according to organizers.
As advertised, the playground at the park near the Rug Mill Towers apartment complex sprung up almost as if by magic, according to Arthur Kondrup, president of the Western Monmouth Chamber of Commerce, who was in charge of getting donations of food and refreshments for the 300-plus volunteers who participated in the project.
"It was amazing to me how well the project went," Kondrup said. "We had 300 special T-shirts made up for the event, and they were all gone, so we had at least 300 people working there."
Among the groups participating in organizing the project and the actual work were the Freehold Borough Council, the Freehold Center Partnership, the Western Monmouth Chamber of Commerce, the YMCA of Western Monmouth County, CNA Liberty Associates and others. Among the dignitaries who participated were Mayor Michael Wilson and state Assemblywoman Clare Farragher.
PHOTOS BY JERRY WOLKOWITZ Volunteers carry a swing set during the community construction of a playground at the Liberty Street Park, Freehold Borough. More than 300 volunteers turned out for the KaBoom! project on Saturday.
"The National Guard Reserve of Freehold provided large tents and water tanks for the volunteers," Kondrup said. "Cynthia Joy, the executive director of the YMCA, coordinated the programs for the event. The borough’s work crew did a great job helping with the actual work."
The CNA Foundation is a founding sponsor of the nationwide KaBOOM! "Let Us Play" campaign, building accessible playgrounds which are viewed as critical to the development of America’s children. As part of the campaign, CNA has committed to build 60 playgrounds across the country with the support of CNA employee volunteers.
CNA is a leading insurance organization, which has been in operation since 1897. The Liberty Street Park project represents CNA’s 46th playground built.
Saturday’s project was carried out without a flaw, according to Jayne Carr, executive director of the Freehold Center Partnership, which oversees activities in the borough’s Special Improvement District. Carr, along with Rich McDowell, representing CNA, co-chaired the event.
Buster, the mascot of the Lakewood BlueClaws baseball team, offers his support and mascot muscle to the community effort that saw a playground constructed.
"Nothing went wrong," Carr said. "Everything went as planned. The rain and the sun stayed away, and we finished the work sooner than we expected. We expected to have the ribbon cutting at 2:30 p.m., but we finished and moved up the ceremonies to 2 p.m. The whole community came together to build this playground. I don’t think the borough has ever had a community project quite like this. It was an awesome thing to see happen."
Max Tillis, who will enter the fourth grade at the Freehold Learning Center elementary school in September, produced the winning drawing that was featured on the T-shirts worn by the volunteers. He cut the ribbon at the ceremonies.
As part of the KaBoom! playground construction process, representatives of CNA, KaBoom! and the partnership gathered input from students at the Freehold Learning Center and the Park Avenue elementary schools on the playground’s design. Volunteers met with the children at special assemblies to discuss their dream playground and then worked with them to capture their vision on paper. From their drawings, a playground concept was chosen to be the model for the Liberty Street Park playground design.
"Today is a great day for the children and families of the Freehold community," Wilson said. "It is critical that we provide our children with a safe and fun environment to play and learn. Our children will enjoy this playground for years to come."
Jayne Carr, executive director of the Freehold Center Partnership, loosens landscaping material that was used during the construction of a playground.
Farragher also lauded the project.
"Today’s construction illustrates what can be accomplished when partnerships between business and community organizations are created," Farragher said. "I am impressed with the level of commitment demonstrated by CNA, KaBOOM! and the partnership."
KaBOOM! is a national nonprofit organization based in Washington D.C., with offices in Chicago, San Francisco, Atlanta and northern Vermont. It has led more than 275 playground construction projects across the United States and in Canada and the U.S. Virgin Islands.
"This project is a terrific example of what happens when the private sector joins forces with the community," said Gary Rygiel, executive vice president of Liberty Insurance Associates. "Through the efforts of independent insurance industry professionals, we have demonstrated with teamwork our ongoing commitment to the communities in which we live."
Before the KaBOOM! proposal surfaced, borough officials had planned to spend about $200,000 for the complete reconstruction and renovation of the Liberty Street Park, according to Wilson. The borough is providing $100,000 for this project, while rug mill developer Matt Gallagher will contribute the same amount, Wilson said. This work is ongoing at this time.
"This effort by the borough, the developer and KaBOOM! was a marriage made in heaven," Kondrup said.

