Service Above Self was on full display as Rochester Southwest Rotarians joined community volunteers to help build a new KABOOM! playground at West High Field in Rochester's 19th Ward.
The three-day community build, October 7–9, 2026, brought together volunteers, neighborhood residents, and community partners to transform the space into a colorful new playground where children and families will be able to gather, play, and connect. With a goal of recruiting 150 volunteers for Friday's final day of construction, there was plenty of work to go around, from assembling climbing structures and installing equipment to pouring concrete and providing volunteer support. Several Rochester Southwest Rotarians answered the call.
Past President Eleanor Coleman worked up a sweat on the concrete crew, while charter member Donna Sarnacki helped install playground equipment. Past President Karen Emerson, a registered nurse, assisted with volunteer registration and provided medical support, in addition to lending a hand at the playground equipment. Wade Norwood also volunteered at the construction site, while John Curran participated in Thursday's activities and documented the project through photographs. Longtime Friend of Rochester Southwest Rotary Sam Manuele also rolled up his sleeves, joining other volunteers to help install the playground's climbing equipment.
Former Rochester Southwest Rotarian Jesse Knoth brought a particularly meaningful connection to the project. As president of the 19th Ward Community Association and PlayROCs Project Coordinator for Common Ground Health's Healthi Kids initiative, Jesse has helped advance opportunities for children to play throughout Rochester. He was involved in gathering ideas from neighborhood children for the new West High Field playground and was photographed working alongside other volunteers to assemble its climbing structures.
District Governor and Rochester Southwest member Lisa Norwood, a longtime 19th Ward resident, came upon the project during her morning neighborhood walk on Friday. She stopped to photograph the progress, visit with fellow Rotarians, and register as a volunteer, receiving an assignment to the concrete crew's “Butterfly” team.
The playground is a KABOOM! project developed in partnership with the City of Rochester and numerous community organizations and supporters, including Healthi Kids, ESL, the Davenport-Hatch Foundation, the Konar Foundation, M&T Bank, Wegmans, and others.
For Rochester Southwest Rotary, the project represents more than a few days of volunteer labor. It is an investment in a neighborhood and its children—providing a place for recreation, friendship, and healthy activity for years to come.
This is what it means to be People of Action: neighbors working alongside neighbors, putting Service Above Self into practice, and Creating Lasting Impact right here in Rochester.
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Photos courtesy of John Curran and Lisa Norwood.
