Tip Top Park now in tip-top shape
Community effort transforms neglected park into a place of peace, beauty
By PAULA BARR
Daily Journal Staff Writer
Daily Journal Staff Writer
Friday, July 18, 2008
In 2005, Claire Wroblewski headed into the countryside in search of something she could do to better the community.
She found a neglected roadside park, and worked with others to turn it into a beautiful, peaceful outlook on the highest point in Missouri - Taum Sauk Mountain. On Saturday, 200-300 young people from across the Midwest will arrive by busloads to visit the park in Iron County for their annual celebration.
The public is welcome to attend. The event runs from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. The park sits on both sides of Highway 21, southwest of Ironton on the way to Taum Sauk State Park.
“We’ve invited (area) city officials, and Sheriff Dan and his band will play,” Wroblewski said.
Wroblewski and the youths are members of Soka Gakkai International (SGI), a worldwide Buddhist organization dedicated to promoting peace through cultural understanding, education, human rights and preservation of nature. SGI, which has its roots in the philosophy of 13th-Century Japanese monk Nichiren, now has approximately 12 million members in more than 190 countries and territories. Youth members across the Midwest — including some from Japan and India who are in school here — come together each year for fellowship and a celebration. This year’s theme is “Refreshing our Vow, Realizing Our Dream.”
“Everybody has a different dream about how to contribute,” Wroblewski explained. “SGI encourages people to follow their dreams and give back to the community.”
SGI members are encouraged to find projects that will make their communities a better place. When Wroblewski came across the trash strewn Tip Top Roadside Park a couple of years ago, she knew this was the challenge she had been seeking.
“It used to be a place where people dumped their trash and kids got in trouble,” Wroblewski said. “I called MoDOT (Missouri Department of Transportation) to see if I could adopt the park. National SGI said it would support the project.”
Since then, Wroblewski and her husband, Bruce, her family, other local SGI members from the Parkland area, prison inmates in the local work-release program and MoDOT staff have worked together to clean up the park and turn it into a showpiece. In a cooperative effort, they have erected a monument that includes a poem about peace, built an outlook site and created gardens and a pathway in the park, which is nearly one acre.
“MoDOT does the heavy work, and they blacktopped the paths to make them handicapped accessible,” Wroblewski said. “MoDOT has been out of this world with support, as have all the community leaders. This is pulling the best of everybody for this project.”
SGI urged Wroblewski to be sure that supplies and services were provided through local providers. For example, the benches in the park were designed locally and used locally quarried granite, she noted.
Along with the improvements came a new name, Daisaku Ikeda Tip Top Park, which is named after the current SGI president.
Future plans call for a cherry orchard. So far, volunteers have planted six trees, and the Wroblewskis have trucked water to the park twice a week to help them grow. The orchard will include another six and MoDOT has agreed to take over watering, Wroblewski said.
No longer is the park used by litterers, as the community appears to respect the hard work, she added.
The new beauty of the park is matched by the spirit of those who have worked to improve the site.
“Every player has performed above and beyond, including the community, who have been so supportive and joyful,” Wroblewski said. “The players are very diverse, but we’ve harmonized. The results are way above what we ever could imagine!”
Paula Barr is a reporter for the Daily Journal and can be reached at 573-431-2010, ext. 172 or at pbarr@dailyjournalonline.com.
She found a neglected roadside park, and worked with others to turn it into a beautiful, peaceful outlook on the highest point in Missouri - Taum Sauk Mountain. On Saturday, 200-300 young people from across the Midwest will arrive by busloads to visit the park in Iron County for their annual celebration.
The public is welcome to attend. The event runs from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. The park sits on both sides of Highway 21, southwest of Ironton on the way to Taum Sauk State Park.
“We’ve invited (area) city officials, and Sheriff Dan and his band will play,” Wroblewski said.
Wroblewski and the youths are members of Soka Gakkai International (SGI), a worldwide Buddhist organization dedicated to promoting peace through cultural understanding, education, human rights and preservation of nature. SGI, which has its roots in the philosophy of 13th-Century Japanese monk Nichiren, now has approximately 12 million members in more than 190 countries and territories. Youth members across the Midwest — including some from Japan and India who are in school here — come together each year for fellowship and a celebration. This year’s theme is “Refreshing our Vow, Realizing Our Dream.”
“Everybody has a different dream about how to contribute,” Wroblewski explained. “SGI encourages people to follow their dreams and give back to the community.”
SGI members are encouraged to find projects that will make their communities a better place. When Wroblewski came across the trash strewn Tip Top Roadside Park a couple of years ago, she knew this was the challenge she had been seeking.
“It used to be a place where people dumped their trash and kids got in trouble,” Wroblewski said. “I called MoDOT (Missouri Department of Transportation) to see if I could adopt the park. National SGI said it would support the project.”
Since then, Wroblewski and her husband, Bruce, her family, other local SGI members from the Parkland area, prison inmates in the local work-release program and MoDOT staff have worked together to clean up the park and turn it into a showpiece. In a cooperative effort, they have erected a monument that includes a poem about peace, built an outlook site and created gardens and a pathway in the park, which is nearly one acre.
“MoDOT does the heavy work, and they blacktopped the paths to make them handicapped accessible,” Wroblewski said. “MoDOT has been out of this world with support, as have all the community leaders. This is pulling the best of everybody for this project.”
SGI urged Wroblewski to be sure that supplies and services were provided through local providers. For example, the benches in the park were designed locally and used locally quarried granite, she noted.
Along with the improvements came a new name, Daisaku Ikeda Tip Top Park, which is named after the current SGI president.
Future plans call for a cherry orchard. So far, volunteers have planted six trees, and the Wroblewskis have trucked water to the park twice a week to help them grow. The orchard will include another six and MoDOT has agreed to take over watering, Wroblewski said.
No longer is the park used by litterers, as the community appears to respect the hard work, she added.
The new beauty of the park is matched by the spirit of those who have worked to improve the site.
“Every player has performed above and beyond, including the community, who have been so supportive and joyful,” Wroblewski said. “The players are very diverse, but we’ve harmonized. The results are way above what we ever could imagine!”
Paula Barr is a reporter for the Daily Journal and can be reached at 573-431-2010, ext. 172 or at pbarr@dailyjournalonline.com.
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