Phillips Memorial Park in Cameron recently celebrated the dedication of its latest addition: The Dewberry Express playground. The dedication occurred on Saturday, April 27, and was preceded by a morning of fun activities for all ages.
In keeping with Cameron’s historic railroad and train theme of the playground, the first fifty children to arrive were gifted toy train whistles. It was a beautiful morning for the dedication, and participating children enjoyed being able to “conduct” their own fun with the whistles during the ceremony.
The festivities started at 9:30 a.m. with a butterfly encounter and visitors from Holly Nest Animal Rescue. Shortly after, the ribbon cutting for the park’s new Winnie the Pooh Interactive Story Trail commenced and was celebrated with a full-fledged butterfly release.
Airborne K9 set up a dog obedience demonstration where park-goers were invited to sit and watch as professional handlers talked the crowd through tips, tricks, and tracking. Onlookers were invited to get a closer look at the gear and supplies used after the demonstration and encouraged to talk with the handlers.
After the morning’s interactive experiences concluded, the crowd chugged ahead to the day’s crowning event: the dedication of the new Dewberry Express playground.
Laura Younts, who was heavily involved in the entire Dewberry Express process from start to finish, was present to give a short speech. She personally thanked the community, volunteers, and donors who made the park possible. Younts announced that over two years, the community raised over $54,000 in donations toward the park.
As a “thank you” for her extensive efforts, Laura’s teammates surprised her with a plaque for her “tireless effort that went into bringing the park to life.”
According to the Town of Cameron, the playground was dedicated in memory of Dot Womble, wife of former mayor Mack Womble, for whom the original wooden train was dedicated. The “dewberry” aspect of The Dewberry Express stemmed from a demand in the late 1800s and 1900s for namesake dewberries to be shipped up north from Cameron.
When the brief dedication was over, the children blew their whistles, the ribbons were cut, and the kids ran full steam ahead to be the first passengers aboard the new playground. Judging by the first reaction of all-around smiles, The Dewberry Express will provide off-the-rails fun for years to come.
~Article and photo by Sandhills Sentinel copy editor Abegail Murphy.
