LCRA, City of La Grange award $25,000 grant for shade structure at park playground
La Grange Lions Foundation to install new covering at Kruschel Memorial Park to make playtime safer and cooler
Dec. 5, 2023
Lower Colorado River Authority representatives present a $25,000 grant to the La Grange Lions Foundation for a shade structure at Kruschel Memorial Park. The grant is part of LCRA’s Community Development Partnership Program. Pictured, from left to right, are: Brenda Fietsam and Arnold Romberg, La Grange Noon Lions Club members; Kate Ramzinski, LCRA Regional Affairs representative; Cliff Geise, club tail twister; Martha Langford, club member; Craig Moreau, club second vice president; Matthew L. “Matt” Arthur, LCRA Board member; Michael Ahart, Leo club liaison; Margaret D. “Meg” Voelter, LCRA Board member; Kathy Norwood, club administrator; Mark Ulrich, club president; Sherry Pfluger, club secretary; Karen Mahoney Woods, club board director; Callan Oltmann, club member; Chuck Gibson, club treasurer; Deokie Ramiochan-Ramjohn, club third vice president; and David Ramjohn, club first vice president.
LA GRANGE, Texas – The La Grange Lions Foundation will install a shade structure at the playground at Kruschel Memorial Park, thanks to a $25,000 grant from the Lower Colorado River Authority and the City of La Grange. The Community Development Partnership Program grant, along with $8,250 in matching funds from the foundation, will add a second protective covering at the park on the west side of La Grange. The structure will block more than 90 percent of the sun’s harmful ultraviolet rays and lessen the chance that children will be burned while using playground equipment. “Some of those steel slides – and the plastic ones, too – just get unbearably hot in the summer when kids should be playing on them,” said Sam Wilson, foundation president. “This grant will help us complete the second shade structure at the park, and it’s greatly appreciated. This is a fantastic improvement to our community.” Kruschel Memorial Park is fully accessible to those with disabilities and features a swimming pool and a large playground. It also has youth baseball fields, walking trails and picnic tables, a basketball court, and a sand volleyball court. In mid-July, a shade structure was installed above about half of the park’s playground, thanks to a fundraising partnership between the foundation and the City of La Grange. As part of the project, organizers determined the playground’s slides could cause serious burns on hot days, Wilson said. “Completing this structure will not only help prevent potential 1st– and 2nd-degree burns to young children during the infamous Texas heat, but this playground also will encourage kids to put down their electronics, enjoy fresh air and sunshine, get some exercise and practice their social skills,” said Ken Morris, a longtime member of the La Grange Noon Lions Club. The La Grange Noon Lions Club sponsors the La Grange Lions Foundation for the philanthropic benefit of Lions clubs in Fayette County. “Our motto as Lions is ‘We Serve,’ and we always want to give back to our community,” said Mark Ulrich, La Grange Noon Lions Club president. “Helping kids learn to play well within their community is a part of that service.” The community grant is one of 45 grants awarded recently through LCRA’s Community Development Partnership Program, which helps volunteer fire departments, local governments, emergency responders and nonprofit organizations fund capital improvement projects in LCRA’s wholesale electric, water and transmission service areas. The program is part of LCRA’s effort to give back to the communities it serves. The City of La Grange is one of LCRA’s wholesale electric customers and is a partner in the grant program.
About LCRA
The Lower Colorado River Authority serves customers and communities throughout Texas by managing the lower Colorado River; generating and transmitting electric power; providing a clean, reliable water supply; and offering outdoor adventures at more than 40 parks along the Colorado River from the Texas Hill Country to the Gulf Coast. LCRA and its employees are committed to fulfilling our mission to enhance the quality of life of the Texans we serve through water stewardship, energy and community service. LCRA was created by the Texas Legislature in 1934 and receives no state appropriations.
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