Day 43: Making a Splash

Photo: Bob Vrbanac

Last summer, while I was 7 months pregnant, I joined efforts with Daisy Arseneault to make Lions Lagoon in Waterloo Park free. It didn't make sense that almost every splash pad in the tri-cities was free except for this one. Sure there was a fence and change rooms, but really there was nothing overly unique about it to charge families $2.50 per person to use it. That was the other thing that bugged me, why were parents and grandparents paying an entry fee when they really weren't using the splash pad.

So, Daisy and I went full force ahead and were able to get the final day of summer free for all users! With a 2 month old Samantha in hand and the weather perfect, almost 700 people splashed that day! The turn out was amazing, the feedback was inspiring and the people were supportive! We raised over $200 and created a beautiful "hand made" poster to give to the Mayor at our next council meeting with them.

From that day, seeing the joy and excitement on the children's faces; the thrill of saving money on the parents faces, and the excitement of those around us I knew this was the right thing to do.

We campaigned, we fundraised, we contacted the media, we contacted the politicians, we did everything we could to make our voices and the voices of Waterloo heard! We raised over $2500, we were in the media almost monthly and were loud on Facebook and Twitter! After a lot of hard work, planning, media exposure and help from the City of Waterloo, it was finally time, time to vote, time to see if we had been heard, time to see if we had made a difference!

And...it was unanimous...a unanimous vote all in favor of not only making Lions Lagoon free for 2013, but for the next 3 years! I was in utter shock, I was proud, and I was so happy!


As a mother, I think it is my goal to make a difference. Make a difference in Samantha's life and the world around her. Well, last night I can honestly say...I made a difference. I want Samantha to make a difference, to speak out against injustice, to take a stand for what she believes in. It will not always be an easy task and there will always be barriers, hurdles and people who don't want her to succeed. But, that is just life. And as long as she stays true to herself, her beliefs, morals and values, I will be proud.

But for now, I cannot wait to hear Samantha laughing as she runs through the sprinklers this summer at Lions Lagoon with all the other children!