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Lions Club Helps Finance Sanchez Park Renovations
Lions sanchez 2-1-23
Gathering at Sanchez Park in Escalon on Friday afternoon, Jan. 27, members of the Escalon Lions Club said renovation work at the park, which the club helped finance, is nearly complete. Shown, from left, Lions John Salvin, Dick Dawson, Mike Powers, Robert Swift, John Largent, and Chuck Sawyer. Marg Jackson/The Times

The wait was worth it, or at least members of the Escalon Lions Club hope so, as renovations are helping to make the playground area at Sanchez Park safer and more fun for youngsters.

Working cooperatively with the City of Escalon, the local Lions helped finance some of the needed upgrades to the park, gathering at the site on Friday, Jan. 27 as the renovations neared completion.

It was a $32,000 project overall, said past president Mike Powers.

Lion Robert Swift said some of the funding originally came from NG Energy, a firm the city has utilized for installing solar panels at multiple locations around town.

“Every city they do a project in, they donate $25,000 back to the city,” Swift noted of the energy firm.

Using that $25,000 for the base of the project, the local service club helped with the rest.

“We came up with the balance,” said Powers.

The club had gone to the city looking to assist with some type of community project, as all the money the Lions Club raises through its various events goes back into the community. “We picked the biggest the project the city wanted to get done.”

That project was the Sanchez Park improvements, with installation of a new slide, replacement of roofs over play structures and more all a part of the effort.

“This idea has been in the works for a couple of years,” Swift, also a former City Council member, said.

There is also a new swing set and the work was done by Always Playgrounds, based in the Bay Area city of Vallejo.

Some of the structures were also refurbished and the slide, larger than the original, has additional supports.

With sunny weather on the way, Lions Club members said they were glad to see the project coming to fruition, just in time to open up the playground for youngsters throughout the area.

Meanwhile, the Escalon Lions Club is also putting the finishing touches on planning for its annual St. Patrick’s Day Corned Beef and Cabbage Dinner, their next big fundraiser.

The event is set for Thursday, March 16 at the Escalon Community Center, with all proceeds benefitting community services and charities.

Tickets are $30 per person; libations begin at 6 p.m., dinner at 7 p.m. and takeout will also be available. Get tickets at D’Boni’s Pizza, Escalon Body and Frame or from any Escalon Lions Club member. You can also contact Steve Scott at 209-404-2289.