Place to Play Park: An All Inclusion Playground in the Cedar Valley
posted on Tuesday, September 17, 2019 in The Cedar Valley Community
We (and others) love to brag about the Cedar Valley, especially when an additional like this is brought to the community. When we talk about opportunities
for everyone, this is exactly it. Opportunities for your kids to thrive regardless of what might be setting them back, opportunities to meet and connect with others, opportunities to bring the community together, opportunities for growth. Amanda Weichers and Sarah Corkery, we can not thank you enough for all your hard work, dedication and selflessness to make this beautiful place come to life and bringing this amazing addition to the community.
Original Article from KWWL Amanda Gilbert
Two moms watched their kids with disabilities struggle on playgrounds. So they teamed up to bring an inclusive park to the Cedar Valley.
It’s a project that would take about five years and $1 million, but they did it! The inclusive playground is now at the corner of Algonquin and Ashworth, and it’s possible thanks to the entire community.
The opening day for the place to play park was this past Saturday. Around 500 people showed up.
Beau’s Beautiful Blessings is an organization created to, “educate and create awareness about epilepsy, brain abnormalities and intellectual disabilities as well 
as helping those who may suffer from them.” Moms Amanda Weichers and Sarah Corkery are a part of Beau’s Beautiful Blessings, and they played a huge park in bringing this inclusive playground here. They say inclusion matters, and they just wanted a place where all ages and all abilities can play together.
Corkery adds, “We don’t need to have segregated places for different people. We all live in the same world. And so if we can accommodate things and make it easier for people who need a little extra help, it makes it more fun for everybody.”
In the inclusive park, you’ll find a zipline, a slide built into a hill, a sandbox, a sensory board, adaptive swings, and more. The turf is also so important for safety and mobility, and it was one-third of the million dollar budget. That is why they are asking people to please not bring their pets inside the fenced-in park.
Kids alone raised $13,000 through bracelets for Beau sales, birthday party donations, garage sales, pumpkin sales, lemonade stands, and hot cocoa stands. Contractors worked for less than what the work would normally cost. People donated thousands after hearing stories of children who couldn’t do something as simple as play alongside their friends and family. There were grants, in-kind donations, tons of monetary donations, and the city stepped up to help as well.
Photos taken from Beau's Beautiful Blessing Facebook Page
Video done by Pixel Labs