The Pennies for Play Purple Day Carnival Saturday raised nearly $3,000 toward updating the Kerry Park playground.
The event was attended by Vikings alumni Doug Sutherland and Matt Blair along with fellow alumnus and local resident Frank Youso.
"I heard so many good things about our guests, especially Matt Blair, he was out there really mixing it up with the kids,” said event organizer and Journal webmaster Robin Bjorkquist. “Matt told us more than once, the kids are our future."
The event was part of the Pennies for Play campaign, sponsored by The Journal. The event is raising money to repair or replace 20-year-old equipment at the Kerry Park playground.
Between the carnival and penny drive donations that have been collected since January the fundraiser has earned more than $7,500. A $17,500 goal was set to completely replace the aging structure.
Pennies for Play will continue collecting money through May. If enough money is raised, a matching grant could be used toward purchasing a new playground set. Otherwise, renovations will be planned to fix the current play structure.
International Falls is in friendly competition with the city of Hibbing to see which community can raise more money for their parks.
Bjorkquist said the carnival could not have been a success without the help of members of the community — those who attended the carnival and those who volunteered time and prizes for the event.
"We're pleased that everyone seemed to have a really fun time, that was part of the goal, in addition to raising money. We just wanted the community to have some fun,” she said.
"There were so many people who contributed to making the carnival work. There were so many volunteers needed to make the whole thing come together and they all did a wonderful job. Without the volunteers, none of it would have happened.”
Vikes alums on Falls
International Falls was one of the many public appearances Blair makes each year. He said attending events that benefit children, such as Pennies for Play, are especially meaningful.
“Everything I do for young people is special,” Blair said. “I’ve had the opportunity to grow and be successful and I think our future needs to be supervised, watched, given time to so they have opportunities for the same things I had opportunities for.”
Blair said he was here in 2007 after a sled dog race and plans to return to International Falls this summer. He spent several hours while he was in the area visiting scenic places and photographing Borderland from the land and air.
But one of the things he said he will remember about the trip is the camaraderie with fellow former Vikings Youso and Sutherland.
“I just had a chance to meet Frank Youso. He was on the first Vikings team formed here,” Blair said. Meeting Youso was an honor, he said. “So you never know what you’ll learn. That was my treat.”
Youso agreed that interacting with the Vikings alumni and helping a cause for children was an incentive to attending the event in his hometown.
“I think you’re doing a good thing here,” Youso said. “I think that Kerry Park needs the repairs and this should have been done many years ago. I hope they build the park up and make it respectable. And besides that, I like to get out and meet people.”
Sutherland said he was almost an International Falls high school football coach after college, before he was offered a position with the NFL’s New Orleans Saints.
“I’ve always had a soft spot in my heart for International Falls because they offered me an opportunity,” he said. “Always good people, a pleasure to be here.”
“Kids are important,” Sutherland added. “There’s nothing better than having a nice, safe place to bring your kids. ... It’s giving back to the community. I love Minnesota and I love the people.”
For photos, visit www.ifallsjournal.smugmug.com
