Look! A Utah neighborhood has a new playground!

But 11-year-old Rosili Olson saw a problem. She has two younger sisters. The playground seemed designed for older kids. 

Rosili says of her siblings, “I love them . . . and I wanted them to have fun.”

The preteen started brainstorming—with crayons. 

Her dream playground included slides, monkey bars, and rope climbs. She asked her mom if she could take her pictures to city officials.

So off they went to meet Mr. Eric Howes. He is the community services director for Clearfield City. He listened to Rosili’s suggestions. He looked at her pictures. “She has details of what everything is,” he says. “She showed it from four different angles.”

Mr. Howes has worked with city parks and recreation departments for almost 25 years. He says hearing Rosili’s ideas is one of the most fun experiences of his career. 

It turned out it was too late to change the playground Rosili heard about. But the city planned another playground at nearby Bicentennial Park. Officials asked Rosili if she wanted to help with the design. 

Rosili’s mom brought her to every planning meeting. Mr. Howes says he rarely sees such commitment. “She [Rosili] just put in so much effort, I felt like it ought to be rewarded,” he says. 

City officials reviewed multiple versions of Rosili’s playground. They even got her input on the final colors. 

Rosili is now 12. She cut the ribbon at the grand opening of the new playground on September 24. “It’s even better than I imagined,” she says. “It’s so beautiful.” 

Why? If people want to see changes in their towns, they can follow examples like Rosili’s. Regular citizens can do big things in their communities.