The equipment is here, the calendar is marked and the Brookhaven Recreation Department is ready for volunteers.

     Recreation Department Director Terry Reid has scheduled the construction of a new City Park playground for Sept. 17 through Sept. 21. Volunteers will provide all the labor, and Reid doesn’t plan to turn anyone away.

     “We’ll need as many as we can get,” Reid said.

     All the components of the new playground arrived at the Recreation Department Friday.

     BRD Assistant Director Chase Coley and his crew helped unload the equipment on a hot afternoon behind department headquarters on Highway 51.

     “We’re real excited about it being put together and seeing what it looks like,” Coley said. “We’re looking forward to getting it done.”

     Reid encouraged local residents to spread the news if they’re planning to volunteer.

     “We need to get the word out we’re ready,” he said.

      Volunteers, though, don’t need to commit to every day or even one full day. Reid is willing to take any amount of time people have to offer.

     “You can volunteer for half a day, two hours, any amount of time,” he said.

     Reid would prefer at least 20 to 25 people scheduled to work each day.

     He also emphasized volunteers don’t have to be 6-feet tall men built like linebackers.

     “Anybody can volunteer. It’s not all manual labor,” Reid said. “We’ll have something for anybody.”

     On previous projects, some volunteers have cooked and served meals to the other volunteers or provided free childcare for people working on the project.

     During those past projects, different churches brought sandwiches for lunch and Reid hopes to see that again.

     “We need food donated for the workers so they don’t have to go buy their lunch,” Reid said.

     In addition to labor, Reid is still looking for supplies, such as the food for the meals and plenty of water, and hand tools.

     Potential volunteers should contact Reid at the recreation department at 601-833-3791. He has the forms and paperwork there and can provide information on available dates and times.

     The new playground equipment is coming to Brookhaven via a community self-help grant from the Mississippi Development Authority. As a self-help grant, volunteer labor must provide all the work.

     A supervision crew from the company the playground equipment was purchased from will be on site to make sure the equipment is assembled correctly, but cannot help construct anything.

     The city has received this grant twice before and used it to put new playground equipment at Bicentennial Park and Bethel Park. The City Park equipment will be a little larger than the playgrounds at those parks.

     Reid said the current playground equipment at City Park is aging and will be dismantled. The new playground will be located next to the City Park spray park.