New playground brings excitement to Rankin
Community opened new playground June 30
An awesome swing set is part of the reason kids have been swarming to the new playground near the Glad Tidings Bible College since it opened on June 30 in Rankin Inlet. - Darrell Greer/NNSL photo |
Darrell Greer
Northern News Services
Wednesday, July 12, 2017
RANKIN INLET
The squeals of laughter, sounds of kids at play, and even the odd sound of kids being impatient are being heard in a new area of Rankin Inlet since the community's newest playground opened for business on June 30.
The playground is a welcome addition to Rankin's limited, but slowly and steadily growing, list of healthy recreational activities aimed at the community's youngest members.
Tagalik Eccles began as the community's assistant recreation co-ordinator at the end of May, when she returned home from the Nunavut Sivuniksavut program in Ottawa.
She will remain in the position until she heads off to Iqaluit in a few months to begin the Nunavut law program.
Eccles said on Sunday, June 25, a worker hired to come to Rankin and work on the new playground arrived in the community.
She said recreation co-ordinator David Clark and a number of members from the hamlet's recreation department worked for a week straight - from 9 a,m, until 9 p.m. - to get the playground finished and available to the kids.
"All the equipment had all ready arrived in the community, so, as soon as the guy arrived, David (Clark) wanted to do everything possible to get the playground running," said Eccles.
"The playground has been full-up pretty much every day since it opened.
"The last afternoon they were working on it, there was a big group of kids there waiting until they finished so they could start playing on it.
"The playground helps keep the kids physically active and busy for the summer."
Eccles said while she's not sure how many people in the community knew the new playground was coming, they certainly noticed once the crew started working on it and the excitement built from there.
She said, so far, the playground has averaged attracting about 100 kids throughout each-and-every day.
"There's no time limit, like, as far as a closing time. It's always open.
"Everybody seems to be content with it.
"The kids are excited about having it, and even the workers were excited while putting it up.
"It's a hamlet project and everyone seems to be quite happy with it."
