St. Vincent's new play structure keeps kids physically fit
Cottonwood/Holladay Journal (October 2006)

St. Vincent’s School in Holladay has just completed its playground renovations and put in the KOMPAN Play Structure that challenges students both physically and mentally. The playground renovation was made possible through a grant from the R. Harold Burton Foundation as well as the proceeds from parent fundraisers.

In an effort to address the nation’s child obesity epidemic, St. Vincent’s was striving to provide physical activity options for their students to engage in during recess as well as before and after school, according to Principal Mark Longe. The majority of the school’s playground equipment dated back 40 years, and last year the swing hinges broke. As school officials began looking into replacing the swings, they found it necessary to update their playground equipment to make it safer and provide structures that allowed its students to be more active.

The school formed an ad-hoc committee of parents and teachers, then started researching information about different play structures. Their needs were met with the KOMPAN play structure which helps develop gross motor skills, flexibility, encourage socialization, and provides students with increased exercise options.

The process began in June when the Students at St. Vincent’s School in Holladay are enjoying the new play structure installed, thanks to the donations of supporters of the school. surface area was measured and the new equipment, including swings, was decided upon. The old spider structure and 40- year-old swings were town down. The gravel was removed and stored for future use. New equipment arrived in mid- September and was installed after the concrete footings were poured. Three trucks arrived from Colorado with the wood chip ground cover. The school maintenance manager spread this new filling throughout the entire playground area 14 inches deep using a Bobcat machine donated for this purpose by a parent of the school.

“St. Vincent’s School is committed to keeping their students physically active thus helping curb childhood obesity,” Longe said in a release. “St. Vincent’s realized that it was important as a school to provide the necessary means for their students to increase their physical activity, and the new playground equipment would help. Studies have shown that exercise helps in student’s overall well being, concentration and stress release. St Vincent’s students have now enjoyed the new play structure for a week by scaling across the rows of climbing opportunities, balancing, problem-solving, and communicating with one another as they become physically fit.”