Teen builds new playground equipment for elementary school
At Northwood Elementary, something new on the playground has kids going gaga!
“I was like woah, where did this come from,” 5th grader Van Cook said with surprise.
The gaga pit was built by 16-year-old William Fitch, a student at LEE High School’s STEM Academy.
“It’s basically kind of like dodgeball, except you hit it with your hands and you hit people below the knee. So, it’s really safe and pretty much anyone of all ages can play. I’ve seen people all the way from kindergarten up to college people play it,” Fitch said.
“After the third bounce, you hit the ball and whoever hits knee-below you’re out,” 5th grader kaylee Maldonado explained about Gaga Ball game.
William is a Boy Scout on Troop 345 and spent his entire Thanksgiving break and every weekend since, building the pit and ramp from the ground up.
“Really, I just built it so that they will have fun. The reason I did it at Northwood is that I went here as a student. My father also went here as a student and I live just two blocks from here. I’ve grown up in Northwood and I’ve grown up at this school,” Fitch explained.
“I think it’s pretty cool that he did that with just him doing it,” 3rd grader Adelina Martinez added.
William said the manual labor involved was rewarding and he learned a lot about himself in the process.
“I think in the real world a lot of it stems from leadership. That’s what I’ve learned from going to school, doing projects and doing scouting is leadership,” Fitch added.
It’s his way of giving back to the community while also offering students at Northwood a chance to have fun in a healthy way.
“It took a long time and it was a lot of effort but it was definitely worth it to see people play on it,” Fitch said.
Because #NEISDcares!
