The Reminder is making its archives back to 2003 available on our website. Please note that, due to technical limitations, archive articles are presented without the usual formatting.
Anyone who's been to Rotary Park on a hot summer day has probably wished there was a place to escape the sizzling rays. That's why the Rotary Club of Flin Flon is having a shade structure built at the popular park that bears the service club's name. "There is no real shaded area at the park," said President George Fontaine. "My kids worked at Rotary Park and sometimes found it difficult to be there. I know there's a need." The shade structure, which will be about 36 feet long and located beside the wading pool, is expected to be completed next spring. Beneath the roof of the finished product will be a cement pad and picnic tables, with lighting being discussed as a possibility. Fontaine hopes to have the structure painted blue and yellow, the official colours of the Rotary Club. Contractors have already sunk some of the metal support posts into the ground. Interestingly, the posts were leftovers from the Canadian Tire development. Much of the work so far has been done on a volunteer basis or at a sharply reduced rate. Another improvement already underway is the installation of a new lit sign at the entrance. Fontaine hopes to have the sign finished by Christmas. The club president is hopeful that this work marks the beginning of ongoing enhancements to the park, located at the corner of Bellevue Avenue and Third Avenue. "The park is in a part of town that's not being properly serviced in terms of the kids not having the same facilities they do in the Willowvale area, for example, and it's time they did," he commented. "Hopefully it will start to receive the same kind of recognition as the pool at Willowvale, where we can raise some funds and maybe have a spray pool involved." Fontaine said the Rotarians have worked hard on this project but felt the need to single out Reg Hiebert for his "tireless" efforts. The club is interested in hearing from the public regarding other possible improvements to Rotary Park. "We can't promise anything, but we'd like to make the park something the community would consider another jewel," said Fontaine. Anyone with suggestions may contact George at 687-6188.
