Park signs project completed

The Manchester Village Parks Commission’s signage project is now complete, thanks to the craftsmanship of local artist Jeff Tervo. Kirk Park, which contains baseball diamonds for youth sports as well as a basketball court, a small pavilion constructed by the Men’s Club, and a play structure, was named in honor of Edward and Dorothy Kirk, lifelong residents and prominent citizens of Manchester during their lifetime. Photo courtesy of Kindra Weid.

by Marsha Chartrand

“The Manchester Parks Commission wants to publicly thank Jeff Tervo for his craftsmanship on Manchester’s new park signs,“ said Commissioner Kindra Weid. The long-awaited final installation of the last two signs in the project occurred in mid-October.

“We think Jeff did a great job, and they look very professional,“ Weid continued.

Tervo, who grew up here in Manchester for most of his grade-school years, bought a CNC router a couple of years ago and was using it for a hobby and for making small items for people, including the wood sign with black lettering at the River Raisin Distillery.

“I was contacted by a couple people, asking if I could make some signs for the village parks,“ he explains. “I attended a couple Parks Commission meetings and was asked if I could put a bid together, which I did. The committee later decided to move forward with me.“

He soon realized that the job was somewhat larger than he had anticipated, and the signs would be too large to fit in his machine in one piece. But the commissioners were committed to sticking with Jeff if he believed he could do the job. And he did.

“After lots of testing and troubleshooting, I figured out what I had to do to get the signs carved and assembled,“ he says. “The whole process took longer than anyone wanted, due to technical difficulties and lack of availability, but I finished the signs and everyone seems to be happy with them. Overall, I’m happy with how the signs turned out and that I could contribute something that will help improve the local parks.“

Although he remains busy with his day job, he’s open to talking to people who might want something made without a stringent deadline. He’s grateful for the confidence of the Parks Commissioners, and the feeling goes both ways. The Parks Commission is grateful to have a long-desired job finally complete, one they can point to with pride.

For more information on the park signs project, see our article here.

Chi-Bro Park is also the recipient of a new sign as part of the Parks Commission’s project. The purchase of the Chi-Bro Park property, located on Ann Arbor Hill, was made possible through grants from the Manchester Chicken Broil. The park is home to a large pavilion and the Amy Schnearle-Pennywhitt memorial play structure complex, along with many recent updates, including a disc golf course, new basketball courts, and pickleball. More improvements are planned in the coming two years. Photo courtesy of Kindra Weid.

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by Marsha Chartrand

Marsha Johnson Chartrand, a founder, writer, and copy editor with the Manchester Mirror, is a 50-year resident of Manchester. She has a long history of volunteer and community involvement.