A home-built children's play ground is a labor of love.

Bruce and Sandy Hovland of rural Austin have a unique playground on their acreage. A large red, blue and black sign announces the play area, Keiki's Play Farm. A small playhouse with red shutters and a wooden blue heart above the door is filled with toys and a loft for sleeping.

Near the playhouse is a red bench swing. A small chimney for fires is nearby to be lit when the sun goes down. On the lawn is a large redwood jungle gym. The playground on the Hovland homestead is a more than a play area for children -- it is a memorial for Keiki (Hawaiian for little one) Palmer, their grandson who died June 24, 2000, of Polycystic Kidney Disease.

His parents were Thad and Amy Palmer of Tonka Bay. Amy is the Hovlands' daughter and Keiki was their first grandchild.

Polycystic Kidney Disease (PKD) affects 600,000 Americans and more than 12.5 million families worldwide each year. There are more people with PKD than all diseases combined, these include cystic fibrosis, muscular dystrophy, hemophilia, Down's syndrome and sickle cell anemia.

"Keiki weighed 1 pound 2 ounces when he was born," Sandy Hovland said. "He never lived. We all got to hold him after he was born. PKD is genetic and my daughter, Amy and her husband, Thad, were tested to see if they carried the gene. They don't and they had another child, Joshua, who is now 18 months."

Sandy said losing Keiki made them look at life differently. This family doesn't take life for granted anymore. They decided to make a playground on their farm as a memorial to Keiki. The large sign that announces Keiki's Play Farm was a former HyVee Foods sign. Bruce got the sign when it was being replaced for a new one. He had John Nystrum, of Nystrum Signs, paint the new lettering on the large sign after the old lettering was removed.

"It was a lot of work putting the sign up. I had to cut off some of the supporting posts as I didn't want the sign to be too high. I had to use a tractor to upright the sign and we have the posts cemented into the ground," Hovland said.

The Hovlands found the sided and shingled playhouse, which was built by an Amish craftsman, in Iowa. The windows have glass panes that can be lifted on hot days and cool breezes can come through the little window screens. The cost for the playhouse was $1,700 and it was delivered all in one piece on a trailer.

Not far from the playhouse is the redwood jungle gym that was given to the Hovlands. A small swing set, which was also donated to the memorial, is ready for use on the north side of the playhouse. The front of the playhouse is cemented and there are table and chairs to relax on and enjoy a summer day.

"Every year we add something new out here. We have goats, ducks, dogs, kittens, horses, a jackass named Opie and a deer.

We love kids coming to play here. We had our niece's 12th birthday out here and the girls camped out," Sandy Hovland said.

Day care centers take field trips to Keiki's Play Farm and use the playground equipment and pet the kittens, deer, horses and Opie. The animals are tame and like the attention.

"When these kids smile it makes my day. Someday Joshua, Keiki's brother, will learn all about Keiki. His ashes were spread in Hawaii," said Sandy with tears in her eyes.

Sheila Donnelly can be reached at 434-2233 or by e-mail at :mailto:newsroom@austindailyherald.com