A little summer fun when that was hard to find

The Port Washington Parks and Recreation Department found a way to provide a season of fun for youngsters in a year when summer camps were canceled and schools are struggling with plans to reopen and provide a sense of normalcy for students.

Its playground program, which ran from June 29 to Aug. 14, provided seven weeks of activities for 63 children this summer.

“Our park program was pretty awesome this year,” Recreation Director Kiley Schulte said Tuesday. “We got them outside and playing, and that was the goal. We made it safe and fun.

“I think it’s important that we continue to run programs and have things going on in the community — as long as we can mitigate the risks. We put together policies and procedures for Covid that were extensive to make sure it was as safe as possible.” 

There were, of course, some changes made to the traditional program to help prevent the spread of the coronavirus.

Schulte said playground leaders disinfected everything from toys to doorknobs, picnic tables to play equipment before each session and multiple times during the afternoons.

“We disinfected everything but the kids — that was our joke,” Schulte said.

Instead of holding the program at several parks, all the youngsters gathered at Kolbach Park, where Schulte said there was enough room to break them into three groups to minimize contact and provide social distancing.

And few outside groups rent Kolbach, which meant the youngsters had less contact with other people during the program, she said. 

The playground leaders modified games to increase the distance between youngsters, for example, when playing tag, they touched one another with a pool noodle instead of their hands.

The traditional field trips weren’t held this year, so the program brought extra activities to the youngsters. There was tie-dying, a treasure hunt and hike through the nearby Sauk Creek Nature Preserve, water days with sprinklers and water balloons, a visit from the animals at Willow Brook Haven animal rescue in Grafton, and drone photos.

Leaders did self-checks daily to ensure they weren’t sick and they wore masks. Parents were also asked to check their children each day as well.

There was one staff member who reported potential exposure to someone with the coronavirus, Schulte said, but the city consulted with the Washington Ozaukee Public Health Department. Officials there said it was nothing to worry about because there was only minor contact, she said. 

The 63 children registered this year is fewer than typically take part in the playground program, Schulte said, noting that most days 45 to 50 children attended.

“I think parents are OK with the risk of the program as long as they know it’s being handled,” she said. “It’s so important for kids to socialize, and it was so nice to see them make new friends.

“There could have been an outbreak — that’s something I struggled with. It’s not like they were six feet apart all the time. We tried to keep them apart as much as possible. But they’re kids. It’s not in their blood to keep their distance. 

“But we were outside in an open space, We cleaned and sanitized. We made it a safe and fun environment.”