Merrill receives anoymous gift

By Gloria Austin
Staff Writer
    MERRILL — During Merrill’s Centennial Celebration two years ago, residents were giving donations toward playground equipment for Merrill Millstream Park dedicated to the playground fund.
    A few months ago, the town applied for a Small Communities Grant from the state for playground equipment to be installed at the park. Unfortunately, the town did not receive the funding. But, when there is a will, there is a way.
    Merrill Town Manager Candy Nevers received a gift of $4,000 from an anonymous benefactor.
    The Merrill Millstream Park committee wants to continue improving the area and determined children needed a playground, specifically preschool children, said Nevers.
    “When we applied for the grant, we were looking at ordering a section of playground equipment from CedarWorks because it is Maine-made and the lumber is milled at Katahdin Forest Products in Oakfield. The original piece cost $6,400. The town will now purchase just a portion of the playground equipment and hold fund-raising events to add more pieces to the section over the next few years.
    The townspeople are supportive of the plan to add the playground equipment, since the closest playgrounds for preschoolers are in Patten, Houlton and Littleton.
    “The community has been overwhelmingly supportive and is very excited about [building] a playground for our children,” Nevers added.
    As of now, school-aged children can use the playgrounds at their respective schools, but Merrill Millstream Park’s playground will accommodate both preschool and school-aged children.
    People can donate money in honor of, in memory of or just in a family’s name, which will be engraved on a name plate at the park.
    Donations can be made to the town office in Merrill and marked “playground fund.”
    Editor’s note: When Ken Bustard picked up the playground from Cedar Works, they had another section that they had used as a display for two years. After a discussion, they sold that section — original selling price $3,500 — to the Merrill Millstream Park for $750.