By GAYLE WEBER

gweber@dailynews.net

GRINNELL -- A one-time grant through Kansas State University is helping residents here further improve the city park while educating the public about health and nutrition.

The community, with the help of Grinnell Area Business PRIDE, Grinnell USD 291 and Gove County Extension, received the grant to install exercise stations around the park's walking trail, a relatively new addition.

"It's been a work in progress," Gove County Extension Director Tressie Mitzner said. "It's not finished yet, but we're adding new stations and new equipment all the time."

One-third of the $3,000 Get It-Do It grant will go toward education. The community has hosted an educational day at the park for school-aged children and will target all residents at Harvest Fest this summer.

That leaves about $2,000 for the exercise stations such as stair-stepping and stationary bicycling. But Moore hopes volunteer labor will be able to make the money go further.

"We think (the stations) can be made for less money, and that way we can have more stations," said Sandy Moore, PRIDE chairwoman. "We can design them and make them with volunteers."

Many of the park's improvements during the last few years largely can be attributed to volunteer labor and community donations.

Rose Kane, USD 291 superintendent, said high school students created the redesign of the park. Since then, students have been helping put together play equipment for younger children and the middle-school students also have done some of the educational work with younger children.

Kane said the school district uses the park for team-building exercises with its staff and physical education classes for students who can use the walking trail.

"It is nice to see people using it at different times of the day," Kane said. "It's a concrete path, so it's comfortable for ones that have strollers."

Get It-Do It grants were awarded to six communities in Kansas and each are doing something a little different to boost community health and nutrition. For Grinnell, the intent was to increase activity in the park.

Since the city started providing funding to revitalize the park, new play equipment for two age groups of children, a disc golf course, shelters, a VFW display and new landscaping has been installed.

The exercise stations have to be in place by Nov. 1 in order to comply with the grant. Next on the project list for the park is installing a splash pad since the city doesn't have a pool.

"A lot of the work at the park has been through volunteer work, city funds and several grants," Kane said. "It takes a commitment of everyone in the school, the city, the PRIDE group and the local people."