Emily rallies community for new park

Two years ago, 9-year-old Emily Lindsay told her family she wanted somewhere to play with her neighbourhood friends.
Emily contacted her local Councillor, Laurie Koranski, and the wheels were set in motion.
Emily door-knocked her neighbourhood collecting signatures for a petition to have play equipment installed in her local park on Emerson Road at Bannockburn.
‘I sent a message to Councillor Koranski on behalf of my friends and asked if she could help us out,’ Emily says.
‘I told her we had a green space in our estate but no playground within this area. Councillor Koranski was lovely and asked me to get a petition
going.
‘Council was super helpful and then came out and looked at the park and they listened to some of my ideas about what would be good in a play area.
‘Now we have a playground and it’s awesome that the kids around the neighbourhood can come and play in our park.’
Cr Koranski praised Emily for her passion and says she is an inspiration.
‘I was invited into Emily’s world and it’s been the most inspiring experience,’ Cr Koranski says.
‘The fact that she reached out with a great idea that had a community need and now here we are enjoying the park together – it’s pretty amazing.
‘The Parks team at Council were great and onboard from the start, assessing the space and sitting down with Emily and listening to her ideas.’
Emily’s stepdad James Wilkinson says the playground has been used by many more kids and families who have moved to the suburb.
‘They refer to it as Emily’s Park, which is great and testament to all the hard work she put in,’ James says.
‘At school she was invited to give a speech about getting her park and it was very uplifting. It’s a fantastic outcome and serves a great purpose.’