Moana, which used to fish out of Oamaru and was owned by the late Paul Tangney, who was presumed drowned off the Oamaru coast in 2004, had about 3500 volunteer hours spent on it to turn it into the centrepiece of a sandpit in the junior playground.
It now has a 7.6m mast, cabin, stairs up to the cabin roof and a slide, the work being done by the Menz Shed and Oamaru Lions Club in the past three years.
On Saturday, the volunteers who did the work and those associated with the project will attend the ''Moana Celebrations'', which will recognise their efforts.
One of the organisers, Gloria Hurst, said yesterday the event would include a blessing by Waitaha's Anne Te Maiharoa-Dodds, short speeches, a performance by the Oamaru Intermediate School's kapa haka group and the unveiling of new artworks.
The playground, including the Steampunk concept, originated from a youth forum in 2010 involving 60 pupils from each of Oamaru's secondary schools.
It also included community groups,More space for children to play and a say in how it should be developed was one idea for improving Oamaru and the Waitaki district for young people which sprang from the forum.
