Infectious laughter could be heard in Onset as children played and dashed around a completely reimagined playground.

With a new accessible walking path, revamped basketball court and new playground equipment, the old wooden playground has been redone. The Leonard C Lopes Memorial Park welcomed guests to its grand reopening Saturday, June 14.

The old wooden structure had been up for like 40 years and needed to be removed for safety reasons. The new playground was funded with the Community Preservation Fund after a vote for the remodel was passed at the 2024 fall Town Meeting.

With a $100,000 state grant and a $750,000 budget, construction began in March 2025.

The old swing sets and sensory friendly swing from the old park remain alongside signage and memorial plaques. Although the zipline and play structures may be new, memories remain from the community staple.

 6-year-old Valentina Perez recalled playing at the aging park. She said she loved the new park much more because she got a splinter the last time she visited.

"I remember when I was little it was all wood and I couldn't go on it again," Perez said.

For attendants like Sharon Robinson, seeing all of the additions brought memories of lost loved ones. Robinson's husband Clifford used to tend to the park every day before his passing three years ago.

"Even though he was going through dialysis he would come down here and pick up all the trash," she said. "They didn't have a trash barrel down here and he would go and put it in our trash."

Robinson said she can't wait to bring family to the park.

"I hope it stays as good as it is and the kids all take care of it," she said.

Select Board Chair Judith Whiteside led the ribbon cutting ceremony as she waved around Lopes Park branded giant scissors. She thanked everyone involved in the process of revamping the park and shared plans for the future.

"Not everything is done yet," she said. "We have plans to finish it off in the fall."

Accessible walking paths will be added around the park as well as new surfaces for the basketball courts. 

7-year-old Lydia Legault said she loved the park, especially the swings.

"I went all the way up to the sky," she said. 

For many of those in attendance, the payoff was immense. DeLiza Fernandes has been a part of the revamp project since its beginning advocating for accessibility and spoke to the crowd before the ribbon cutting. 

She highlighted how involved the community was in the revamping of the playground from ideas, construction and volunteering.

"We're still grateful to be where we are in this journey," she said. "In a world that often feels really heavy right now, there's so much beauty in witnessing the simple joys of kids playing, laughing, exploring and just being kids. It reminds us of what really should matter."