Total pages in book: 90
Estimated words: 87260 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 436(@200wpm)___ 349(@250wpm)___ 291(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 87260 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 436(@200wpm)___ 349(@250wpm)___ 291(@300wpm)
I smiled. “You know, I wouldn’t mind if she dated him. He is such a nice man, and my mother deserves someone who will cherish her.”
Nate took my hand in his. “So do you, Haven.”
Stopping, I faced him. “I found him in you.”
Leaning down, he gently brushed a kiss across my lips. “I love you.”
I placed my hand on the side of his face. “I love you more.”
Tapping the tip of my nose, he replied, “Impossible.”
Taking my hand once again, we started to make our way toward the small group. Heavy equipment was pulled up and parked, and about twenty guys were marking out things with survey sticks.
“Sorry we’re late,” I stated as I walked up and hugged my mother and then Sophia. “I hope you weren’t waiting for us.”
“We just got here as well,” Sophia said as she rubbed her hands together. “It’s so cold out.”
Doug laughed. “It is, but the sooner we get going, the better. We haven’t gotten much snow, so it’s perfect to get things marked out. The next step will be to use the heavy equipment to prep the area.”
“How exciting!” I said as I looked out. “What are they marking now?”
“That is the building. I met with Rose the other day over Zoom. She has some great ideas, and I really like the idea of doing a small area out here for the fire pit.”
“Yes,” I said as I looked at the plans. “We just need to figure out a way to keep it safe so the dogs don’t get near the fire.”
“That should be easy enough. Also, I want to make sure we are a go for the splash park.”
Turning to look at Nate, I smiled before focusing back on Doug. “Yes, that is a go.”
“Great. I don’t think I have any other questions as of now. Let’s take a walk, and I can show you a rough layout of the park.”
I nearly jumped and clapped my hands. I was so excited. I could not believe my dream of the dog park was finally coming true.
As we walked around the area, I was surprised to see how big the park actually was.
“I had a few people reach out to me about making a donation in the form of memorial benches for people to sit on, as well as some covered areas for the benches. You could even offer something like plaques in memory of a pet that people lost.”
“Really?” Sophia and I said at the same time.
“Yep,” Doug replied as he kept walking ahead of us.
Sophia held me back. “Who do you think donated the benches and covers?”
I shrugged. “I’m not sure. Maybe someone who is excited about the dog park?”
“Let’s ask Doug if he knows who it was.”
We quickly caught up to everyone else.
“This will be the small dog park. Over here will be the covered seating, the poop station, and the dog washing station.”
“How exciting!” my mother said as she did a three-sixty turn. “I can’t wait to see it.”
“Me too,” Josh said with a wide smile.
“Doug, do you know who made the donations?” I asked.
“Yes. They reached out yesterday and wanted to donate in memory of their grandmother, a dog lover.”
Sophia’s hands went to her chest. “That is so sweet. What a wonderful idea.”
My mother turned and looked at Sophia and me. “What if you built a brick entrance into each dog park and gave people the option of buying a brick in a loved one’s name? It could even be in the name of a fur baby if they wanted?”
Looking at Doug, I asked, “Is that possible? The brick sidewalk?”
He nodded. “That’s a great idea. Do you have a website yet for the dog park?”
Josh answered, “We do. It’s live, but there isn’t much on it, just a few drawings of what the dog park will potentially look like.”
“I would make a section on the website for people who would like to buy a brick. While you’re at it, you can never have enough benches, so you could have people make donations for memorial benches as well.”
“You could even name the splash park in someone’s memory if they wanted to make a larger donation,” Mom added.
“That’s a great idea, Grace,” Nate stated. “You don’t have a name for the dog park yet, right?”
I shook my head. “Not yet.”
“What if you do a community event where they get to submit their name ideas, and you can pick a winner?” Nate said.
“That is a great idea!” I said as I felt another wave of excitement building. “We could do it at the community center and make it a family fun event where people can bring their pets.”
Doug pointed to me. “That’s a great idea. By getting the community involved, you’re giving yourself free marketing. Plus, if they feel like they were a part of the process, they will most likely be more connected to it, which means they’ll buy a membership.”