The long-awaited opening of Jenae Larson’s playground took place on Saturday afternoon.
Planning for the playground has been underway since early 2021, just months after the Beach Road landslide claimed the lives of David Simmons and Jenae. Jenae Larson, a Haines High School graduate, was returning to her hometown to work as a kindergarten teacher at Haines Elementary School at the time of her death. Jenae’s mother, Kim Larson, said her daughter had always wanted a new playground for her students. Kim Larson and other supporters began raising funds toward that goal in March 2021.
Larson explains, “We’ve been working nonstop on fundraising and planning and all the people are involved. Yeah, it’s kind of cool to see it all come to life. One day we started with a piece on a napkin in my kitchen and from there this is what happened.”
The cost of the playground was over $700,000. The primary contributors were Haines Borough and Haines Borough School District, with additional funding coming from several nonprofit organizations and individuals. The playground features custom-built and designed play equipment, from a whale to a lighthouse.
Chris Mertl of Corvus Design talks about the design and implementation of the playground. “I took all the ideas I got from Kim on the committee, understood her vision for the Janae Playground and put it into action. So we developed the master plan and created cost estimates that were used for the fundraiser. And then we helped develop the construction documents that made the construction possible,” explains Mertl.
Once the plans were finalized, all that was left was to put everything in place. Carlos Jimenez of Chilkat Custom Contractors says, “The planning has really been happening over the last few years. And as far as the construction goes, we started planning a few months ago, maybe six months ago, and then we started building about two months ago. I’m proud to be a part of it, Jenae was a friend of mine.”
Now the playground is ready for play. Superintendent Roy Getchell shares his thoughts on finally seeing the playground completed. “It’s hard to put into words, but I hope it gets better. It’s just seeing all these kids playing outside, you know, on the kindergarten playground, forever, you know. So we’re going to have kids playing on this site forever, looking out over Jenae’s classroom and everything else. It’s just incredible to see how this project came together through the collaboration and cooperation of so many in the community and the tenacity and love and dedication of Kim Larson in seeing this through.”
Principal Lily Boron adds that the playground was an excellent way to keep Jenae’s spirit alive. “I’ve known Jenae for a very, very long time as a family friend, as a friend of my girls, and also as their high school teacher. And what comes to mind is that Jenae was just a very nice person and also a really, really hard worker. She had her goal. She wanted to be a teacher and she worked very, very hard to become what she wanted to be. And in the end, she achieved that. She was a wonderful kindergarten teacher and she loved her job and was excited about it and we were excited to have her as a part of the school. So it’s really great when you look around and see this playground because her spirit lives on in this and in this contribution to our school.”
State Rep. Andi Story, who was also present at the opening, says the playground is perfect. “I’ve been talking to Kim for a while about this happening, and that’s why I just wanted to be here. It was a great moment to see the community come together, to see everyone here so moved, and you could feel the love for their teacher and this playground. I mean, look at the floor, just the safety areas for them to play in, and it’s so southeastern, and all the things that Jenae loved, you know, the whale, the canoe, it’s perfect.”
At the end of the day, Kim Larson has nothing but gratitude for all the support. “I just want to thank the community for supporting me along the way, not just on the playground, but for everything over the last three and a half years. We couldn’t have done it without the community and all the support they’ve given us. And yeah, I just compared it to the playground as it used to look and what it looks like now. It’s just overwhelming, you know? I accomplished something, and I did all of this for the right reason. And it’s beautiful, I love it,” Larson finishes.
Archie Dunbar, one of Jenae’s first students, says he will spend a lot of time on the playground: “I’m just glad we were able to show what a good teacher she was,” Dunbar concludes.
