Orange Mound's Splash Pad water park marked its much-anticipated return on July 4th, an event shadowed by the somber memory of a mass shooting that occurred mere months prior, Action News 5 reports. Now, emanating the laughter of children and the communal joy of families seeking respite from the sweltering heat, its reopening stands as a defiant beacon against the violence that took two lives and inflicted injury on several others during an April 20th block party turned tragic.
The Splash Pad at Orange Mound Park, undamaged during the incident, resumed operations after resolving maintenance issues, while other areas of the park on Carnes Avenue suffered approximately $25,000 in damages; this reopening arrived just as summer temperatures notably began to soar into the triple digits, according to a press release from Councilwoman Jana Swearengen-Washington obtained by FOX13 Memphis.
Area native Tedrick Buford expressed a mix of vigilance and reverence for the park, as he recounted memories of growing up in Orange Mound and his desire to share a piece of his story with his son – this treasured spot serves as a ground zero for both past struggles and present joys, "Just for him to come out here and when he gets older, and I can explain to him where I came from," Buford told Action News 5, "Chances are he won't have to go through what I went through as a kid in this neighborhood. I just love it."
As children splash away and families congregate, the echoing sentiment within the community remains one of rebuilding, recovery, and indeed, finding solace and safety in shared public spaces like the once again bustling Splash Pad, communal echoes of laughter serving both as memory and momentum, and amid the festivities, thoughts can't help but drift to the unanswered questions surrounding the senseless violence that precipitated a different, somber remembrance, "Unfortunately, rest in peace for the people that lost their lives, but I see two months later, you know you got the kids out here enjoying themselves," Amari and Jade Guest remarked to WREG.
The case remains unresolved, and no arrests made: video footage discovered in the aftermath shows a dark-colored Chevrolet Corvette cutting through the park's basketball court, an omen to the ensuing chaos, WREG notes. This somber knowledge underpins the relief and joy that now permeates the park, concurrent with the hope that despite the scars of the past, the community of Orange Mound can forge a strong, unified, and loving path forward.
