The Chase Kraynick Memorial Community Splash Park in Canora is among projects to receive an Aviva Community Grant this year.
"We were overjoyed, ecstatic and extremely excited to have won," said Rachel Kraynick of the $90,000 donation toward the project. The splash park is a legacy to Clint and Rachel Kraynick's son Chase who died in a farming accident at age six.
"It was very satisfying to know that all our hard work paid off.
"We are thankful to have had this AVIVA competition to compete in and are especially thankful to our broker supporters Farrell Agencies for coaching us along the way."
The money is critical to the project, added Kraynick.
"This win means that we are able to proceed with the project," she said.
Kraynick said word of the win caught unexpectedly.
"It was a complete surprise," she said. "We didn't have a gut feeling one way or the other.
"We did have a lot of sleepless nights worrying about what else we could have done or if our efforts were sufficient to beat out the competition. We just kept our fingers crossed and knew that we did absolutely everything we could have to the best of our ability! We did know that whatever the results (win or lose) we did the best we could."
In terms of working on the proposal for Aviva, Kraynick said they had put a lot of effort into rallying support.
"We not only worked hard on the project application and video submission but we set up a Facebook page, a Twitter account and a blog to help engage the public on the AVIVA competition," she said. "These were our outlets to keep the public informed on the competition, voting rules and regulations and how we placed throughout the rounds of voting.
"We even entered two AVIVA floats in local parades (Santa Clause Parade in Yorkton and Winter Lights Festival in Canora) asking for spectators to vote.
"I spoke at local schools to engage students and circulated the "Pay it Forward" concept to all schools in the Good Spirit School Division, Christ the Teacher Catholic Schools and the Regina Public School Division."
On a personal level Kraynick said she is so pleased to see the park moving forward.
"This $90,000 means that the Chase Kraynick 'Pay it Forward' Splash Park will be built this year," she said. "We were determined that this splash park was going to be a reality at some point in the future but this win means that we can begin construction this year.
"It is amazing and we are so happy to be able to do this for the community and surrounding areas."
Kraynick is also pleased with the local support the Aviva effort generated.
"Canora is a wonderful community that we are proud to be a part of," she said. "This victory through the AVIVA competition however, took much more than just the efforts of Canora. It took the help of all the surrounding communities and folks within and outside Saskatchewan. Folks in Yorkton have been wonderful supporters of our project and we want to say a huge thank-you to everyone that helped this project become a reality!
Work on the park will start once the snow melts.
"We plan on ordering the sprayer components this week and construction will begin this May," said Kraynick of the $300,000 project. "We have had numerous trades people wanting to 'pay it forward' and volunteer their time and expertise to install the splash pad which will expedite the project significantly.
"If all goes well, we can have a grand opening of the Chase Kraynick 'Pay it Forward' Splash Pad on July 1, 2013."
