New playground equipment that kids love marks a success story for community members who learned to work together to reach out for help to fill their own needs.

When the playground equipment at the Ewa Beach Community Park on North Road was deemed unsafe and removed by the city in September 2011, a community development organization applied for and won a $90,000 grant from the city.

"The whole funding covered just the equipment," said Christiane Bolosan-Yee, president of the Ewa Beach Community Based Development Organization. "So we looked for people to help provide a lot of material and surfacing. We had so many donors that gave of their time and supplies. All the rest of the money came from donations and hard work from people who really care about the community. It’s really awesome."

The community held a project blessing and dedication ceremony Saturday afternoon, when kids tried out the new equipment.

The Explorer Dome, a 14-foot-high climbing structure for children 2 to 12, features "a spider-web weave of ropes, ladders and climbing equipment," Bolosan-Yee said. It was built by a Danish company, Kompan, and meets all city and federal structural and safety standards.

Another attraction is the spinning bowls, which work on centrifugal force and don’t require any kind of steering.

Bolosan-Yee’s daughters ran to them as soon as they got to the playground, as did many other children.

"They were having fun testing out the spinners that look like the teacups at Disneyland," said Agnes Queja, another organization member. "I tried it out myself."

The Ewa Beach organization was formed in 2009 as a Weed and Seed initiative to economically stimulate and develop the community. It got a boost from Empower O‘ahu, a nonprofit designed to support so-called community implementation groups.

Together they worked to gain Ewa Beach federal designation as a Neighborhood Revitalization Strategy Area.

With that designation, the Ewa Beach organization, as a 501(c)(3) nonprofit, was eligible to apply for certain grants, including the one from the city.

Without the grant and donations, the project would have cost $175,000. Donors included Ameron, David’s Fencing, Dura Constructors, Endo Electric, the Ewa Beach Crush Youth Football League, Gentry Homes, the Hawaii Regional Council of Carpenters, JDS Construction, Masons Union Local 630, Operating Engineers Local 3, Paradigm Construction, Pineridge Farms, South Pacific Steel and West Oahu Aggregate.

Bolosan-Yee, who grew up in Ewa Beach, said: "My husband and I decided to stay in Ewa Beach and raise our kids here. To watch my kids play — I’m so grateful I had this opportunity."

The organization also has sponsored training for people wanting to start small businesses. The result is 11 new businesses in the past year.