Half-way done

Lorri Sughroue/McCook Gazette

Carole Gaunt, from left, a teacher at McCook Elementary, cuts lining at the McCook Elementary playground today with help from principal Tim Garcia and recently-hired elementary teacher, Deborah Donelan, so the rest of new recycled mulch can be put down. About 57 bags of the bright blue mulch, recycled from Nebraska tires, needs to be placed on the playground and in the swing set area. "It's all about hands," Garcia said, hoping for some more help. "We can rock and roll if we can get the manpower." A total of 57 bags of mulch will be placed, with each bag weighing 2,000 pounds. The project began Wednesday with help from several teachers, staff and community, including Paul Paz from the maintenance staff, members of the high school volleyball and football team, teachers Tracy Flaska and Stephanie Sis, the Jason Bonar family of McCook, offenders from the Nebraska Department of Corrections Work Ethic Camp/McCook and from Jessica and Dave Miller, who donated their skid loader, time and other equipment for the job. The mulch will replace the wood mulch that was hauled to the community garden in McCook with the help of a truck provided by Dave Winder. The district has been saving for this project for the past three years, Garcia said, and costs will be minimized with 50 percent of the $32,000 paid for the mulched reimbursed to the district by the state. Other projects planned this summer at the school is a full-sized basketball court and new basketball hoops, along with a concrete slab that students can use for games such as Four Square. Those projects will be paid for with $10,000 donated from McCook Elementary PTO.