Playgrounds are ubiquitous in the U.S. Go to most any city neighborhood and you're find a residential park with playground equipment; not far away you'll also find a good-sized city park with plenty of grass and the accompanying playground paraphernalia; not to mention the playgrounds at the many grade schools and middle schools nearby.

But, of course, there are some cities in this world where children don't have a neighborhood playgrounds. Imagine, for instance, being a Palestinian child growing up in Bethlehem. Susan Abulhawa, who resides in Yardely, Pa., with her four year old daughter, is the founder of the not-for-profit organization "Playgrounds for Palestine (PfP)." LASN contacted Susan to hear her story first-hand, but she was, unfortunately, out of the country, but gave us permission via email to tell her story in words and pictures. Susan was born in Kuwait to Palestinian refugees who fled the country during the 1967 war. She spent two and one-half years in an orphanage in East Jerusalem in the early 1980s, and came to the U.S. when she was 13. She has a master's degree in biomedical science and works in pharmaceutical research. She also volunteers her time to assist human rights groups. She formed PfP after returning to visit her home in Jerusalem after 20 years away. She found the life of a the Palestinian children "profoundly heartbreaking." That was the impetuous to build playgrounds in Palestine. After a year's effort, PfP has built its first playground in Bethlehem. A year? Yes, it took a year just to get the necessary paperwork and clearances to have the playground equipment shipped from the American Playground Corporation. The playground equipment finally arrived in November 2002. Ms. Abulhawa and Mark Miller, a PFP affiliate, after three hours and five security checks (just on the U.S. side), flew to Israel to oversee the installation. Mark, a first time visitor to the Holy Land, penned a diary of the experience. [Editor's note: The construction details are gleaned from Mark's online diary.]

The Arbor Hills Nature Preserve is unique because the park was designed as a 125-acre wildlife preserve in the midst of Urban Sprawl in Northern Texas. The preserve was designed to reflect the farming heritage of the surrounding area which is why the bathrooms, seen in the foreground, were built in the style of a grain silo. Behind Cedar Elms, Hackberry's and Bur Oaks in the background are the small and large pavilions. From the large pavilion, where the main trail extends north and west, visitors have a full view of the preserve.

In the heart of urban sprawl, marching north from Dallas to the Oklahoma border, rests a 125-acre refuge of wildflower meadows, wooded slopes, and sandy streambeds. Nestled among the gated subdivisions and new shopping malls of the North Dallas suburbs and just three minutes from the North Dallas Tollway, part of the property had been used as a dump site during the construction of neighboring tracts. Intuitively acquired in 1990 by the City of Plano as part of their parks and recreation master plan, the parcel is now completely surrounded by community development. Arbor Hills Nature Preserve invites visitors to rediscover nature in the heart of the suburbs and provides visitors with a glimpse of what the landscape of North Texas used to look like.

The City of Plano initially conceived the property to be developed into a typical, suburban recreation park, complete with ball fields and tennis courts. Upon initial site reconnaissance, however, the planning team discovered a site that could become more of an asset for the community and add a unique facility to the city's collection of parks. The property sits in the transition zone between the Blackland Prairie region and the Whiterock Escarpment, home to a variety in animal and plant habitat. An inventory of existing species revealed that a remnant "Blackland Prairie" plants were reclaiming the old farmstead and begging for attention. Site diversity also included the Indian Creek Tributary and over 80 feet of natural topography change. The opportunity presented itself for a park based on preservation and educational discovery. The end result: the Arbor Hills Nature Preserve.

The city embraced the suggestions of MESA Design Group to develop the Nature Preserve concept and contracted them to lead a team for master planning the park and completion of Phase I construction drawings. The grand opening of Phase I was appropriately marked by the ceremonial throwing of a "seed ball" (clay mixed with seeds which are gradually dispersed through rain) over the hillside overlook.