Group of parents raising funds for playground

POLAND — A group of concerned parents is working to upgrade the playground at Dobbins Elementary School, 3030 Dobbins Road.

The Dobbins Elementary Playground Renovation Committee will hold a benefit dinner from 1 to 3 p.m. March 9 to help the cause. It will be at Poland Seminary High School cafeteria, 3199 Dobbins Road, and is being hosted by Outback Steakhouse.

Tickets are $20 each and are limited to a total of 250. Dinner will be served on a first-come, first-served basis. Carryouts will be available.

The ticket cost includes dinner, drinks, dessert and family entertainment.

“The playground is one area that people assume that is taken care of by tax dollars, but this isn’t the case,” said Deborah Masluk, Renovation Committee co-chairwoman.

The facilities are used by the elementary pupils attending there, but also by families using the adjoining fields for soccer, baseball and football.

The committee has been selling various items, holding raffles and said it received a grant from local philanthropist Tony Lariccia of Boardman to replace some benches and swings. More is needed to update other equipment and put safety surfacing on the playground.

The dinner will include a silent auction, a Chinese auction and a 50/50 raffle.