Playground ready for play

LUMBERTON — School officials, community leaders and volunteers joined forces Saturday to install a new public play area adjacent to Lumberton Junior High School.

Play equipment provided Kaboom went up in just a few hours, thanks to the many hands that turned out to help install the corloful, interactive play place.

The brain child of Kewanda Merritt, founder and executive director of CONNECT Community Inc. in Lumberton, the new playgound is for use by everyone in the surrounding area. She said the project came about when she learned there was no public play place for the more than 200 children ages 5-12 within a 5-mile area.