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Published on: Monday, July 23, 2007
Tampico families fill park for dedication
BY RICH BIRD
MANAGING EDITOR
rbird@svnmail.com

TAMPICO - Sunday afternoon in Tampico's Reagan Park was the kind of day of which Norman Rockwell would have been fond.

Families gathered on lawn chairs around a handcrafted gazebo in the center of a park filled with freshly planted trees and flowers. There were tables laden with sheet cakes covered in pink and blue icing, and folks lined up to grab glasses of freshly poured iced tea and lemonade. Nearby, kids played on swings, and climbed on a cannon dedicated to troops of past wars.

The occasion was the re-dedication of the park and the hard work that went into a makeover that took two years.

The Tampico Area Revitalization Project, spearheaded by Linda Brown, Shirley Lester and LaMonica Henrekin, began planning renovations for both Reagan and nearby Booth Park in 2005. One year later, a fundraising effort began, and shovels began hitting the dirt in the fall.

The group invested $45,000 into the two parks - $15,000 in Reagan and $30,000 in Booth.

Their hard work was not lost on Mayor Larry Specht, who made some brief remarks to the crowd.

"Because of them, we have some beautiful new spots to enjoy, including Reagan Park, Booth Park and the town square."

More than 100 people gathered to hear emcee Don Lester, the husband of Shirley Lester, read through the litany of volunteers, who donated their time and materials to create new recreational space.

Forty volunteers added a new playground and a small skate park at Booth Park, the Lions Club helped with donations and some landscaping and the Men's Club plans to refurbish a back stop so kids can play tee ball or kick ball.

With donations of cement and antique-style lighting, to the various flowers, trees, flower boxes and more, it was hard to believe there was anyone in Tampico who wasn't somehow responsible for helping to pitch in.

"It's like an extended family," said Brown. " It's like the whole town just comes together."

Perhaps the most striking aspect of the remade Reagan Park is the new gazebo, which replaced a metal structure that stood on the spot since the town's centennial in 1975. According to Lester, the old shelter was actually the discarded roof of a grain silo.

With it's lattice work and overlapping shingles, the new gazebo, harks back to turn of the 20th Century, when young Ronald Reagan was born here in town.

Located just around the corner from the Reagan Birth Place on Main Street, and across the road from the Reagan Boyhood Home. The park, formerly known as Depot Park, or Railroad Park for it's proximity to the rail stop in the center of town, was renamed Reagan Park in July of 1985, during he President's second term.

However, the park is not solely a memorial to the 40th President. Along the freshly-poured cement walkway that winds through the park, there are now nine park benches, each a memorial in an of itself. The benches were purchased by Tampico-area families in the memory of loved ones whose names are engraved on small plaques mounted on each bench.

Finding willing families to donate for the benches was not a problem, Lester said.

"If we'd have really worked hard at it, we could have put 40 benched in here, but then we'd have a theater, not a park," he said.

There is still more to do. The group has a vision of a statue to depict young Reagan playing on a Civil War-era cannon. It's a vision that the group will continue to take donations for in the hope of making it a reality.

Until then, folks like Brown will simply enjoy what they have already accomplished.

"It is amazing," said Linda Brown, a member of he revitalization project. "This is the sweetest little town."