Twenty-Five Years of Building Community

By Tommy Noyes

Seated on Melinda Morey’s fantastical mosaic eel bench in Kamalani Playground, Graeme Merrin recalled heading up the dedicated all-volunteer construction crew in 1994. Photo by Tommy Noyes

Twenty-five years ago in Lydgate Park, thousands of volunteers came together and built the Kamalani Playground. You’re invited to volunteer on Saturday, Oct. 26 for a community workday celebrating the 25^th anniversary, starting at 7:30 a.m. in Lydgate Park’s Main Pavilion. There will be appropriate tasks for volunteers of all abilities, and lunch will be served.

Leaders from the 1994-build shared their memories of the intense community build.

“I’ve been with the Friends of Kamalani and Lydgate Park for 25 years,” recalled Graeme Merrin, who headed up the drive screw operations.

“I met (playground architect) Bob Leathers from Leathers and Associates, and Bob said, ‘Who’s the captain in charge of the drive screws?’ I said, ‘I guess that’s me,’ and he said, ‘You’re really important — I’ll need you to here 6 a.m. until 9 p.m. every day for the next week!’

“But you know, I really enjoyed it. It was incredible to see the number of people that rolled up — six thousand people — and built this whole playground in five days flat!

“And the best part was when the whole place was done, we had the blessing, and then they turned the kids loose. I remember they were still brushing sealant on the back of the park and the kids were running in at the front end. It was just a great experience … I’ve loved being involved.

“I highly recommend that folks get involved with the Friends of Kamalani. It’s a great, great project, so get some volunteer work under your belt.”

Artists Sally French and Melinda Morey took charge of the ceramics, masonry and mosaics in the center of the Playground.

“We did the walls and fish out of mosaic and reclaimed tile,” recalled French. “But what happened was the kids (were working on the mosaics, and) didn’t want to stop. We made up an area where they could just keep working, and they worked … all night! And when we came back the next morning, the wall had changed from a very structured underwater scene, into this exquisite abstraction of small, little jewel-like environments! Each child’s (artwork merged) into another creatively, just running with it. Now we have yards and yards and yards of mosaics that were created in literally one night by maybe a hundred or more children at the time, who are grown now on the island.”

KONG Radio personality Ron Wiley summed up the spirit and recruiting appeal, “Here we were, 25 years ago, building community, building friends, getting together with all our resources, all our love, all of our affection, to build something for our kupuna, our keiki, and everyone in the community. Amazing and phenomenal!”

“So, would you join us? Come celebrate Kamalani Playground’s 25^th anniversary. It’s Oct. 26. You can help celebrate 25 years! Such love, such aloha. Kamalani Playground is the personification of aloha and the aloha spirit.”

Contact event coordinator Tommy Noyes at 808 639-1018 or www.kamalani.us for information on the big 25^th Anniversary of Kamalani Playground community workday celebration.

• Tommy Noyes is Kaua‘i Path’s executive director, a League of American Bicyclists Certified Instructor and active with the Kaua‘i Medical Reserve Corps.