A lot of growing up happens in school yards, which is why GOCO has proudly funded upgrades to them across the state.

Weldon Valley Preschool serves three communities—Orchard, Goodrich, and Weldona—with the area’s only playground for preschool-aged children and their families. In partnership with Morgan County, Weldon Valley Preschool applied for and secured a $110,000 School Yard Initiative grant from GOCO to make much-needed improvements to the school’s playground.

Once an unsafe and uninviting place for kids to play, the playground now offers opportunities for nature interaction and includes water and sand elements, swings, shade structures, and engaging playground equipment like boulders and other natural materials for climbing. It provides a safe and fun environment for all children both during and after the school day.

As part of GOCO’s School Yard Initiative, which ran from 2013-2019, schools applied for funding in partnership with their local governments to create spaces where kids could enjoy unstructured play and outdoor learning. All school yards were designed, at least in part, by students. Across the state, play yards that were four decades old on average were given new life with exciting upgrades, often integrating special features like nature play elements, outdoor classrooms, gardens, and more.