The new playground at the Alton Boys & Girls Club on Amelia is going up fast. (Photo by Brad Piros)ALTON - The groundbreaking ceremony of the new Alton Boys & Club playground was Monday and was well-attended by donors and special friends of the club.

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Alton Boys & Girls Club Executive Director Al Womack provided special recognition to Eddie Sholar, Gaye & Hon. Barry Julian, Helmkamp Construction, Simmons Hanley Conroy, Miles & Angel Lynch, and CNB Bank & Trust for their donations and work in the project.

Ideal Play and Surfacing are the ones who are assembling the playground and prepared the site.

"We have a long-awaited groundbreaking for our new all-inclusive playground," Womack said at the event on Monday. "We are extremely excited and grateful to the donors and the support we were given for this project. The new playground will feature of course a sliding board, swing set, and huge apparatus that will be exciting for kids that features a couple of additional sliding boards and climbing areas. Again it will be something new, and shiny and it feels amazing to see old equipment coming out of the ground. It feels great what we are going to do and offer this for the kids and the community."

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John Simmons of Simmons Hanley Conroy said the groundbreaking and playground are both great for the City of Alton.

"This is evidence of progress going on and we just want to be here to show our support for it, that is what we are doing here," Simmons said.

Brian Campbell of Coleman's Country Campers, said he couldn't be more excited for Al, the Boys & Girls Club and the kids.

"It is a wonderful program and helps the community out," Campbell said. "We look really forward to seeing it completed."

Womack said plan next is to build a gymnasium, probably step one, and still raising money.

"Our Annual Golf Classic is Friday, August 11, looking forward to raising money to provide things for our kids."

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