OLD ORCHARD BEACH — Students at Jameson School have watched in awe this week as pieces of their playground have been torn down.

Plans are in place to replace much of the playground equipment in both Jameson and Loranger Memorial schools, as school officials say many of the structures have aged out.

The Loranger-Jameson Parent Teacher Organization has been raising funds for the project, and according to an online fundraising page, www.gofundme.com/oobplaygrounds, has raised nearly $9,000.

Local parent and school board member Michelle Violette said there has also been several in-kind donations, and overall an impressive amount of support by the community.

Jameson Principal Barbara Fletcher said second grader Avery Kurkjy came in to school the Tuesday after Memorial Day weekend and handed over an envelope with money she had made during a lemonade sale over the weekend to donate to the playground.

At Jameson, with only the swings and a climbing wall left for playground equipment, staff are prepared to keep kids active outside the last few weeks of school with walks, hula hoops, corn hole and other games, said Fletcher.

A Hometown Hero Dunk Tank fundraiser will be held at the schools from 9 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. A donation of $1 gets participants two chances to try to dunk a “hometown hero.” Teachers, police officers, lifeguards, police officers and others will take turns in the dunk tank.

New playground structures will be in place in time for the new school year at the two schools, said Violette. As playground structures chosen will reflect the age groups at the two schools, which has shifted in recent years, and will be able to be moved should in the future a new school be built.

“We’re trying to do it in a really fiscally responsible way and to think of the future,” said Violette.

A second phase of the playground project will include landscaping and building natural borders.

School officials are seeking donations for hardwood and boulders to create playground interactive borders using natural elements such as a line of stools that children can jump on. — Staff Writer Liz Gotthelf can be contacted at 282-1535, ext. 325 or [email protected].