by Hans Tammemagi –
“No matter how hard Evil tries, it can never quite match up to the power of Good,” said a wise man. This adage was recently proven at the Keating Elementary School in Central Saanich. A theft of funds appeared to have wrecked the plan for constructing a new playground. Instead of anxiety and sadness, however, two local businesses stepped forward and generously righted the wrong. Now the school will have a better playground than had originally been planned. The kindness offered by these organizations brought tears to the eyes of Mary Lynn Heron, the principal of Keating Elementary.
In December 2015, police charged 43-year-old Tanya Larayne Adam with forgery, fraud and theft after it was noticed that at least $40,000 had disappeared from a fund belonging to the Keating Home and School Association (KHSA). The money, which had been earmarked for a new playground to replace an aging one, had been collected over two years through numerous fundraisers by Keating’s Parent Advisory Council and the KHSA. Adam was a director and the treasurer of the Association.
Almost immediately two organizations, Garden City Tree & Landscape Ltd. and the Peninsula Co-op, stepped forward as generous saviours. Garden City offered to design and build the new playground, while investing $40,000 in the project. The Co-op offered to pay $30,000 for new playground equipment.
Patti Hunter, chairwoman of Peninsula Co-op’s member relations committee, said the $30,000 figure was arrived at after consulting with the school. “It’s an opportunity to make sure the children in our community don’t have to pay,” Hunter said. “The law will take care of the rest.”
A significant benefit, according to Colin Eaton, co-owner of Garden City and a nationally certified playground inspector, is that the new playground, which will be a hybrid of a natural and a regular playground, will be larger, with more elements and more comprehensive than planned initially. “Furthermore, it will be green and very ecofriendly, made from local logs, stone and natural materials,” Colin said, “so it will be a fun and heathy place for the children.”
At time of writing, ground-breaking for the new playground was scheduled to begin toward the end of March and construction should last about six weeks finishing near the end of April. “My partner, Chris Stansfield, and I each have three young children, so we understand the importance of a good playground,” said Colin.
James Taylor, president of the Confederation of Parent Advisory Councils of Saanich, said “It’s been absolutely amazing how the community has really rallied to support those families and that school.
“It just shows you the strength of that community and the important part that the schools, elementary schools in particular, play in that area.”
Photo by www.nuttycake.com.
