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In 1999, Frank Mercede, president of a successful general contracting firm bearing his name, stumbled across a newspaper article on a new accessible playground just constructed in Connecticut. The article caught his eye because one of his twin two-year-old daughters, Jacki, had cerebral palsy, and Mercede had already noticed that there were few playgrounds that could accommodate a child in a wheel chair, let alone provide a fun play experience.
?EUR??,,????'??I showed the article to my father, and we immediately said to each other ?EUR??,,????'??let?EUR??,,????'???s build one for Jackie and Nicola,?EUR??,,????'????EUR??,,????'?? recounts Mercede. ?EUR??,,????'??It was something that we could do to make a difference in the lives of all the kids in the area.?EUR??,,????'??
A week later Mercede began searching for an appropriate site for the playground, focusing much of his attention on vacant city land large enough for a big play area. Several months later, Mercede received a call from a nurse at Stillmeadow Elementary School in Stamford, CT, and his search was complete.
Since it was built in 1972, Stillmeadow had been the district?EUR??,,????'???s primary school for children with physical disabilities and other special needs. And although approximately 55 special needs students attended the school in Pre-K through grade 5, the school playground did not meet their special needs.
?EUR??,,????'??I learned that Stillmeadow had a large number of physically challenged children in attendance, and that the city also owned a heavily wooded piece of land adjacent to the school that was otherwise vacant,?EUR??,,????'?? says Mercede. ?EUR??,,????'??The site was perfect and little did I know that two years later Jackie and her twin sister, Nicola, would both enter kindergarten at Stillmeadow. It was a blessing.?EUR??,,????'??
In June 1999, Mercede began focusing his considerable energies on raising funds for the playground, which would be called Twin Meadows in honor of his daughters. ?EUR??,,????'??We were very fortunate in that some people in the community knew of our family and when they heard that we were building a playground they came out of the woodwork,?EUR??,,????'?? says Mercede. ?EUR??,,????'??We were able to form a very tight knit playground committee consisting of parents, teachers, nurses and physical therapists who either have kids at the school or teach or work there.?EUR??,,????'??
According to principal Michael Sanders, Frank Mercede made the playground a team effort from day one.
?EUR??,,????'??Frank had a series of planning meetings early on with the playground committee to design the playground,?EUR??,,????'?? says Sanders. ?EUR??,,????'??He even involved the children in the design process, which got them very excited.?EUR??,,????'??
The playground committee then engaged Boundless Playgrounds of Bloomfield, Conn., to create a playground with a high level of inclusiveness, and hired Phil Barlow, a landscape architect and principal at TO Design in Hartford, Conn., to integrate the playground into its environment. Lastly, they selected Landscape Structures of Delano, Minn., a leader in the design of inclusive playground equipment, as the play equipment supplier.
The natural setting provided plenty of character for Barlow to work with. The site, which was donated to Mercede?EUR??,,????'???s group by the city, was located on a long, sloping strip of land dotted with mature trees and bisected by a drainage ditch.
?EUR??,,????'??The area was overgrown, yet right away we could see the potential was there to build a truly unique playground,?EUR??,,????'?? explains Barlow. ?EUR??,,????'??Our goal was to produce an environment that would be just as pleasant for the parents and teachers as it was for the kids.?EUR??,,????'??
Over the next two years Mercede organized a retinue of fundraising events, including a walkathon, two golf tournaments, and a wine tasting event and auction. ?EUR??,,????'??We were very fortunate to have Bobby Valentine (who was with the Mets at the time) to be our guest auctioneer at the event, and we raised $150,000 in that one evening,?EUR??,,????'?? Mr. Mercede recalls. ?EUR??,,????'??That event was a big starting point, and as it turned out, it had a domino effect and we began doing more events and raised even more money.?EUR??,,????'??
As Mercede?EUR??,,????'???s fundraising began outrunning the design, the playground grew in size and scope and the team of experts hustled to keep pace. Phil Barlow focused his considerable landscape architectural expertise on the site plan and the environment?EUR??,,????'??+specifying benches, tables and fencing, designing retaining walls, converting the drainage ditch into a stream bed, selecting shrubs and plants, and designing the bridges, access ramps and walkways that would provide access to children of all abilities.
?EUR??,,????'??They did not just come in and cut down the trees,?EUR??,,????'?? says Sanders. ?EUR??,,????'??They created a playground that was very harmonious with the environment. They even used the boulders that they dug out of the ground to create retaining walls and form the stream bed that handles runoff.?EUR??,,????'??
Meanwhile Tony Malkusak, director of design at Boundless Playgrounds, worked with Boundless founder Jean Schappet to design an unforgettable playground that used many of Landscape Structures?EUR??,,????'??? most innovative play events.
?EUR??,,????'??We ask ourselves three questions when we design a playground,?EUR??,,????'?? says Malkusak.
Can all children do fun things?
Can all children be in fun places?
Can every child be at the center of play?
?EUR??,,????'??One way we accomplished these things at this playground was to pay attention to what we call the power positions on the play structure,?EUR??,,????'?? says Malkusak. ?EUR??,,????'??The power positions are the high spots where children can see the rest of the play area and be in a position to communicate with children playing on other events. Well guess what, this playground let?EUR??,,????'???s kids with mobility impairments get to every power position on the play structure.?EUR??,,????'??
What?EUR??,,????'???s more, Malkusak selected Landscape Structures?EUR??,,????'??? fully accessible play panels to rim these power positions. These events, including a Periscope Panel and Custom Driver Panel, allow children in wheelchairs to pull directly up to the events where they can play along with their peers. Malkusak also placed a Talk Tube – a play event invented by Landscape Structures – at one of these positions to facilitate communications with children on the ground.
Not to be outdone by the play structure designers, Mercede?EUR??,,????'???s firm constructed the mother of all power positions – an enormous wheelchair accessible tree house with an enclosed deck that puts children with and without disabilities at the top of the world. Located at the crest of the playground, the tree house is so popular with kids that teachers are even using it to host outdoor classes. The rambling play structures cascade down from this vantage point linked by a boulder-strewn stream, walkways, bridges and poured-in-place surfacing.
The tree house gives visitors a commanding view of the entire play area, which also includes one of Landscape Structures?EUR??,,????'??? most revolutionary accessible play events – the Sway FunTM fully accessible glider. The Sway Fun glider can accommodate two children in wheel chairs and up to a dozen other kids and caregivers. According to Tony Malkusak, the event is unique in that it allows children with disabilities to be at the very center of play.
?EUR??,,????'??With Sway Fun a child in a wheelchair not only can experience a swinging motion along with their friends, but also by using the motion of the wheel chair can actually cause the swinging motion itself,?EUR??,,????'?? says Malkusak. ?EUR??,,????'??This is a very empowering play event, and it is a joy just to watch kids play on it.?EUR??,,????'??
TO Design also made sure that the area surrounding the play structure was a cut above the ordinary. Barlow created a separate outdoor amphitheater adjacent to the tree house for hosting school events, a picnic area protected by Landscape Structures?EUR??,,????'??? CoolTopper shade structures, and a wheel chair accessible maze constructed from hedges.
Steve King, FASLA, founder of Landscape Structures, appreciates perhaps more than anyone the achievements of the team behind Twin Meadows playground.
?EUR??,,????'??We design play events that appeal to children of all abilities, but they achieve their fullest potential when they are placed in proper combination by people who understand how kids play, and are integrated with the environment by people who respect nature,?EUR??,,????'?? King explains. ?EUR??,,????'??This playground has achieved its fullest potential, and it lifts the spirits of everyone who plays on it or visits it. Mr. Mercede and Stillmeadow Elementary should be commended for their keen understanding of the beauty of play, their commitment to the concept of fully inclusive playgrounds, and their respect for the natural environment. They took our best play events and a great setting and created a magical play experience.?EUR??,,????'??
The playground was installed in October 2003 by M. E. O?EUR??,,????'???Brien and Sons, the representative for Landscape Structures in New England. According to Michael Sanders, ever since the installation the magic has had a profound impact on his students.
?EUR??,,????'??This playground fosters a sense of acceptance and dignity for children with special needs,?EUR??,,????'?? says Sanders. ?EUR??,,????'??It makes them feel more like the other children in the school, and that is a beautiful thing to see. Even on the weekends this playground is packed. There are signs now on Highway 95 for Twin Meadows playground and this has become a destination for families from throughout the area. Parents intuitively recognize this as a great place to be with their children.?EUR??,,????'??
After more than four years of hard work, Frank Mercede believes that the efforts of his team were well rewarded. ?EUR??,,????'??Hundreds of people played a role in raising funds for the project and developing this playground, and it is very gratifying to see my daughters and all the kids at Stillmeadow enjoying it so much,?EUR??,,????'?? says Mercede. ?EUR??,,????'??Prior to this playground, many of these kids were spectators. Now they can be at the very heart of play. I can?EUR??,,????'???t thank everyone enough for helping to make it happen.?EUR??,,????'??
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