Site is former Scandinavia Elementary School

By Holly Neumann

The Scandinavia Booster Club is looking for help with fundraising efforts to make improvements to Center Park.

“Center Park, having once been the location of the Scandinavia Elementary School, was developed as a family picnic area and playground after the school building was demolished,” club president Wayne Luck said. “Many people in the Scandinavia area attended school at this location and they have many fond memories of the early years. We want to honor those memories and create new ones for generations to come.”

Located in the center of Scandinavia, it is within walking distance for all village residents. It is also a short walk from the park to a hiking trail around Silver Lake to Jorgens Park Preserve.

“To top it off, it’s just a few blocks from the Tomorrow River Trail, a 29-mile rail trail from Plover to Manawa,” Luck said. “Being about midway along the trail, the Scandinavia downtown businesses and Center Park are the perfect resting spots for weary bicyclers or hikers.”

The club’s goal is to make Center Park a place that can be enjoyed by people of all ages, not just young children, according to Luck.

“We are in the process of defining a long-range plan for playground equipment, park benches, picnic facilities with a couple charcoal grills, a resurfaced basketball court and items that support health and fitness of teens and adults,” he said. “Being a full city block in size, we have many opportunities ahead.”

$30,000 raised to date

The organization has already raised more than $30,000 to fund the project, with the club committing $11,000.

“There is a lot of enthusiasm for the park upgrades,” said Luck. “Because our long-range plan is still in the development stage, our total costs for the long-term project might exceed $100,000. To get a good start, we need up to $50,000.”

The hope is to get the project started by this summer.

“It all depends on our fundraising success,” Luck said. “We plan to do as much as we can as soon as we can.”

There are also other ways to get involved.

“There are many volunteer opportunities that are flexible and can be done from your home on your own time: researching and applying for grants, reaching out to local businesses, creating and mailing letters, website announcements and social media outreach,” Luck said.

Anyone wishing to make a monetary donation for the project can mail donations to Scandinavia Booster Club, P.O. Box 232, Scandinavia WI 54977 or drop off donations at Scandihus, 280 N. Main St., Scandinavia. Please note on the check that the donation is to be used for the playground project.

Contact Luck at 715-467-2090 for more information.