Help clean Kids World for its 10th anniversary

Months of planning, input from Carol Stream students and five days of blood, sweat and tears went into the creation of Kids World in Armstrong Park.

On Saturday, many of the volunteers involved in the planning of the children's playground will gather to reminisce and help with spring cleanup of the playground on the northern edge of the park.

Linda Lombardi and Helen Herbst were two residents who first conceived the idea for the playground in 1997.

They got the backing of the park district to donate property in Armstrong Park and convinced neighbors to host a variety of golf and bowling outings and other fundraisers to pay for its design and construction.

The group raised cash and materials valued at more than $120,000 from nearly 200 local businesses and families.

"This was a playground like no other," Lombardi said. "It was built from the heart of the people of Carol Stream."

To make sure they were building a site kids would actually want to play in, Lombardi said organizers went to area schools to get input from students on the design.

And then, over five consecutive days in May 1998, the group went to work building Kids World.

"Many of the neighbors took a week off of work to help out, working from sunrise to sunset," said Brenda Gramann, a park district commissioner who first got involved through volunteering in the construction of Kids World.

The park district said more than 1,200 people helped work during the five-day construction of the park, which includes 10 sets of swings, a sand play area, multiple climbing towers and several slides.

"It was certainly an emotional event," Gramann added.

Volunteers will work both morning and afternoon sessions Saturday to help spruce up Kids World. For details on the cleanup and celebration ceremony, call the park district at (630) 784-6100.

If you go

What: Cleanup and 10-year celebration of Kids World

Where: North end of Armstrong Park in Carol Stream, along Idaho Street and south of Elk Trail

When: Saturday; morning clean-up crew begins at 10 a.m. and afternoon crew begins at 12:30 p.m.

Details: (630) 784-6100 or e-mail info@csparks.org