Members City of Estevan proudly stood in the bitterly cold wind at Centennial Park at 4:30 on Thursday, November 28, and presented a cheque that should help the City build its newest splash park. With the money raised from the sale of Smile cookies, the City announced Tim Hortons would be giving $11,897 over five years to the park.

"We're absolutely thrilled," said Mayor Roy Ludwig "This will allow us to get the proper equipment, probably better equipment than we would've been able to get with out Tim Hortons' help. So this is a great day and we're very happy that they were able to come to the table."

With splash pools being legislated out in the province of Saskatchewan, splash parks have been the go-to replacement in Estevan. So far. according to the mayor, those parks have been hugely popular. Centennial Park, located right next to the water tower by Affinity Place, is next in line to get a splash pad.

"With the previous splash parks, they've been very popular," Ludwig said. "It's a safer way for the kids to enjoy water. Unfortunately with paddling pools, they're starting to legislate them out so we don't know how many more years we'll be able to keep the paddling pools. This is an alternative that we're working at. Every year or two we're trying to put in a new park."

Tim Hortons raised the money by selling special cookies on designated days. All told, they've committed to donating the sum of $11,897 in just five years.

Ludwig also added that by buying equipment for the city now, when the weather is cold and the demand for splash park equipment is low, the city will save money, making the donation from Tim Hortons timely despite the chilly weather.