NEW IBERIA, La. (KLFY) -- What started as an Eagle Scout project has grown into a community effort to revitalize the New Iberia Dog Park. But just days before its grand re-opening, one of the park’s new features was damaged.

High school senior Kyndall Aucoin said she has always loved animals, often bringing her dogs to the park on weekends.

"I always bring my dogs every weekend to the park, and I’ve always noticed that there’s not really any equipment for them," Aucoin said.

Wanting to make the space more inviting, Aucoin worked with neighbors, local businesses, and sponsors to add new equipment, including tunnels, seesaws and picnic tables.

"I just love dogs," she said. "And being an Eagle Scout, part of the thing that you have to do is a project that benefits the community."

But this week, Aucoin discovered one of the brand-new seesaws had been broken.

"I saw that one of the seesaws that I’ve just put up has a hole in it, and it didn’t really look like it was from a dog," she said. "I do know that around the city park, there’s unfortunately a lot of people that don’t care for any property. So, I think someone was trying to be funny or something and run up the seesaw, and they broke it."

After months of planning and hard work, Aucoin admitted the damage was discouraging. But she said she was encouraged by the community’s response once the story was shared online.

"They really spoke up about it and I didn’t expect everyone to be so upset about it," Aucoin said. "People are actually really trying to work hard to get it fixed and stop the vandalism in New Iberia."

The grand opening of the New Iberia Dog Park is scheduled for Saturday, Oct. 4, at 10 a.m. Aucoin says families can expect treats for both people and their pets, along with a chance to see the improvements firsthand.

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