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Eldorado Grade School unveils new pre-K playground

ELDORADO - Eldorado Grade School celebrated the completion of its prekindergarten playground Thursday evening, in a ceremony attended by staff, parents and lots of eager youngsters ready to try out the new equipment.

"This has been a lot of change really quickly," Eldorado Superintendent Ryan Hobbs told the crowd.

The district received a $160,000 grant from the Illinois State Board of Education to pay for the new playground equipment.

He thanked Grace Tison of Eldorado for her work writing the grant.

"I don't think a lot of people know how much time goes into writing a grant like this," Hobbs said. "It's a lot of late nights and it's a lot of stress. You put your heart and soul into it and then you send it off, and you don't hear anything for three or four months while they evaluate the grant. Then all of a sudden, you get a letter saying you got it or you didn't get it."

Hobbs also thanked state Sen. Dale Fowler, R-Harrisburg, and state Rep. Natalie Phelps Finnie, D-Elizabethtown, for their help to the school district. Both are Eldorado natives.

Fowler spoke, said the grade school holds a special place in his heart.

"This is where my life began," Fowler said of the school, which originally was known as Hillcrest.

Fowler talked about how his father, Wilbur Fowler, had spent many years on the Eldorado School Board working to improve the district.

Eldorado Grade School Principal Blake Bradley also spoke, calling the equipment a "diamond of a playground."

After he and Tison both made remarks, the gate was opened and the children present swarmed the playground.

Kayla Wagenblast slides down a new slide at the Eldorado Grade School Thursday evening. TRAVIS DENEAL PHOTO
Eldorado Superintendent Ryan Hobbs speaks Thursday evening in a ceremony opening Eldorado Grade School's new playground equipment. TRAVIS DENEAL PHOTO