Community Park District of La Grange Park has scheduled its Memorial Park Multi-Court Grand Opening for Saturday, Oct. 9.
The unveiling of the $470,000 remake of Memorial Park is free to the public and run from 9 a.m. until noon.
“I’m very excited for this to be opened because of the opportunities it will give the people of La Grange Park,” Jessica Cannaday, Executive Director of the Park District said.
The inclusive nature of the project, noting that it will provide activities for people of all ages and abilities, Cannaday said.
Included in the new fitness center will be a fitness wall, three new pickle ball courts, and two repaved existing tennis courts. New additions are tether ball courts, a hopscotch area — or fitness walk — and racing lanes for children.
“We get a lot of requests for pickle ball,” Cannaday said. “It’s the fastest growing sport in the United States.”
The pickle ball courts will be popular with seniors, and the fitness wall is designed to give a 7-minute, full body workout to those 14 years and up.
Younger residents will be served by the hopscotch/fitness walk, a tetherball court, a small group of race lanes, and a “gaga” pit.
Gaga Ball is designed for children and includes putting them in a hexagon — or gaga pit — and having them bounce the ball around with by hitting it, but never picking up and throwing it. Players are eliminated if the ball hits them below the knees or they let it go out of the pit.
Gaga Ball, the fitness walk and the race lanes are part of the Park District’s focus to be inclusive and sensitive to the needs of special needs children.
“These activities are designed to let kids use their imagination,” Cannaday said.
The project, the first major initiative since Cannaday became executive director in 2019, was prompted by the National Fitness Campaign, a national group dedicated to bringing outdoor fitness to communities around the nation.
“They reached out to us and said that La Grange Park would be ideal for a fitness court, because of its location and pedestrian infrastructure,” Cannaday said.
The Park District applied for and was awarded a $30,000 grant from NFC toward the physical equipment and materials for the court.
The rest of the funding came from a variety of sources, including the Park District’s Capital Fund, $25,000 from the Village of La Grange Park and several local businesses and individuals donating more than $1,000 and being honored on the donor’s wall near the fitness wall.
Among those donating more than $1,000 were Ancel Glink, the Park District’s legal counsel, American Family Insurance, and the La Grange Brookfield Lions Club.
But it was the $25,000 grant from Strive 4 Fitness, a local fitness boutique that will also be conducting classes on the court, that allowed the project to move forward. While most of the funding was set, it was Strive 4 Fitness the provided the money to pay for the installation of the equipment.
“Their contribution is what allowed us to jump-start the project,” Cannaday said. “But the community really came together to finance this.”
For further information on the Grand Opening of Memorial Park, visit the district’s website at communityparkdistrict.org
