Amid ongoing financial sustainability discussions within the Mohawk Regional School District (and rural school districts in general) it was clear that the deteriorating and unsafe playgrounds at Buckland-Shelburne Elementary School (BSE) were a low priority, and perhaps rightly so. Thankfully, the town of Shelburne recently passed the Community Preservation Act, which allowed us to receive funding for a new Pre-K to first grade playground last year. We took this opportunity to build a fully accessible structure, something the school had never had before.
This summer, we are replacing the remaining playgrounds at BSE with help from a state
earmark achieved by Rep. Natalie Blais and Sen. Paul Mark, additional Shelburne CPA funding, and countless individual and business donations.
What’s perhaps most special about this whole process is the community labor involved (which has roughly cut the project cost in half) and the willingness, and impressive skills, of our community to engage in it. Mike Michonski, of Buckland, has spent countless hours on site with his excavator and other tools. Great River Hydro has, for both years, removed the old equipment for us (huge thanks to Clint Birch, Jim Bourdan, and Glen Dean), and AGH Disposal & Recycling LLC has hauled the equipment off site for us, too. Other local businesses, such as Aubuchon Ace Hardware, Hotfire Bar & Grill, Greenfield Cooperative Bank, and Daniels Land Management have provided the tools and know-how needed to get the job done.
And then there are the people who have shown up in the hot sun to set posts, build, and shovel woodchips — or to stop by with refreshments. It’s such a miraculous site that one can forget, for a moment, that the ultimate goal of this project is its lasting impact on schoolchildren. In these moments, the community coming together feels like the most special part of all.
Kate Lindroos Conlin (Buckland) and Flannery Murphy Geier (Charlemont)
BSE Playground Committee