EVERYbody Plays!

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The new EVERYbody Plays! inclusion playground, located at Melvin Miller Park in Urbana, is already a popular place.

Phase one of the playground was completed in November, but warmer weather and longer days have brought the laughter of many children to the attraction on recent March evenings.

Phase two and three of the playground need further funding before building can occur.

Phase one was completed with funding from the city amounting to $360,000 and $10,000 from the Lawnview Board of Directors. The next two phases, which are likely to cost less than phase one, will require community funding and donations. Until enough funds are raised, phases two and three have been put on hold.

“We are still doing fund-raisers and looking for local sponsors,” said Mary Kay Snyder when the playground was completed in November. Snyder works at the Champaign County Board of Developmental Disabilities.

“A typical playground, like what we used to have and what a lot of people are used to seeing, does not allow access to people with disabilities,” said Snyder. “They might have wood chips, high slides, narrow pathways and multiple levels that they can’t get to. Inclusion playgrounds take care of that. It will work for everybody, kids with or without disabilities.”

Snyder emphasized the need for an inclusion playground in Champaign County, stating that all surrounding counties have inclusion playgrounds that allow easy access for all people.

To make a donation for the EVERYbody Plays! playground or to learn more about the project, visit the EVERYbody Plays! Inclusion Playground Project Facebook page or contact Snyder at 937-653-1775 or [email protected].

Children climb in the enclosed area, complete with netting, at the new EVERYbody Plays! playground at Melvin Miller Park on St. Patrick’s Day.
https://www.urbanacitizen.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/36/2022/03/web1_climbing-net.jpgChildren climb in the enclosed area, complete with netting, at the new EVERYbody Plays! playground at Melvin Miller Park on St. Patrick’s Day. Steve Stout | Urbana Daily Citizen

Martina Ling enjoys the new swings at Melvin Miller Park in Urbana during a recent warm evening.
https://www.urbanacitizen.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/36/2022/03/web1_ling.jpgMartina Ling enjoys the new swings at Melvin Miller Park in Urbana during a recent warm evening. Steve Stout | Urbana Daily Citizen
Children enjoy new inclusion playground

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