The Wheaton Park District in Illinois will be holding a celebration this Wednesday to commemorate the building of the Sensory Garden and
Playground initiative project, the Wheaton Patch reports.
The new
playground equipment that will be installed at the Danada South Park will offer children of all abilities the chance to play together. The project began more than a year ago after Cindy Keck, a member of the Kiwanis Club of Wheaton, proposed the idea as a way to mark the group's 60th anniversary.
According to the publication, Keck gained support from the town representatives, the
parks and recreation department, Western DuPage Special Recreation Association and the Forest Preservation District of DuPage County.
Keck is a developmental therapist who sees many children who have
Sensory Processing Disorder - a neurological problem that causes them to become overwhelmed in loud situations or when too much is going on around them.
"They don't typically do well at normal
playgrounds," she told the publication. "I've seen families that choose to even stay home."
All of this is about to change for these children now that Keck entered and won an essay contest called Together We Play. Keck's essay won the grand prize - $150,000 in
play equipment and educational programs.
The contest was sponsored by
commercial playground equipment company Landscape Structures and Shane's Inspiration, a nonprofit organization that helps build universally accessible playgrounds across the nation. Landscape Structures donated $100,000 in new equipment, and Shane's Inspiration donated $50,000.
The new playground and park will offer separate areas that each focus on sensory stimulation. The news outlet reports that there will be a fragrance garden, a water play area, a boulder climb, a bounce area, an easily-
accessible tree house and baseball field, as well as a shelter for kids to go in if they get overwhelmed.
Rob Sperl, the director of facilities at the Wheaton Park District, reports that the final cost for the new 40-acre project will cost about $1.9 million, although much of the money has come from
fundraising efforts and
grants.
Sperl is excited about the new addition to the town, which he thinks will draw in families from all over the area.
"People could make a day of it," he told the news source. "Come for free and have a picnic and let their kids play. It would be just another example of where Wheaton and the Wheaton Park District have led the nation in making
accessibility for parks a number one priority."