100+ Women Who Care to donate 14k to Parents for Joy Playground 

–The local Paso Robles chapter of 100+ Women Who Care will present member donations totaling over $14,000 to Parents For Joy, the local Atascadero parents organization that is fundraising for the new Joy Playground, which is to be constructed on the grounds of Atascadero’s Colony Park Community Center. The presentation will take place on Thursday, Dec. 21, at 3 p.m., at the Community Center located on Traffic Way in Atascadero.

100+ Women Who Care is a group of local women who are dedicated to supporting the local community. Their stated mission is to have a positive effect on San Luis Obispo County through their personal direct donations to local non-profit organizations. By rallying 100+ women to come together in support of local charities and through their combined efforts, they are able to have a real impact on our local communities.

The local 100+ Women Who Care chapter meets bi-annually in March and November to review and vote on local charity suggestions made by their fellow members. The member who is campaigning for a deserving local non-profit organization presents her case in support of that organization to the entire group. The members then vote and after the votes are counted and a charity has been selected, each member writes a personal $100 check directly to that organization. In November 2017, the local chapter voted and selected the Parents for Joy playground project in Atascadero as the deserving non-profit organization. The individual member donations added up to the combined total of $14,000 which is being presented to Parents for Joy on Thursday.

For those with questions about 100+ Women Who Care or who may be interested in joining the dynamic group, they can be reached at [email protected], or by phone at (805) 226-2822.

Parents for Joy is a group of local parents, families and teachers who live with or are associated with children with special needs. Their vision for the all-inclusive Joy Playground comes from their desire for a playground available to all children and their loved ones that will enhance the safety and involvement of children with special needs, as well as providing the ability for adult parents, grandparents and other adult loved ones with special needs to have access to their children while at play. Oftentimes, standard playground equipment features prohibit disabled adults from interacting with their children on the playground.

The playground has been meticulously designed for not only those with special needs, but for the entire community, including children, parents, families, veterans, and grandparents; it truly will be a place for everyBODY to play! Most accessible playgrounds still have lots of hazards and places that are not accessible to everyone. This playground will be like no other playground in San Luis Obispo County, with numerous very special features specifically designed to accommodate adults and children with special needs. The chosen ground cover is called Poured In Place Rubber (PIP), which is a universal ground cover and makes the entire playground area accessible. For added safety and security, the playground will be fully fenced with only one entrance gate. (Some children with special needs tend to “elope” or run away and don’t understand dangers like traffic.) The main feature will be an accessible treehouse with slides and lots of fun panels to play with. With the one of a kind design, children who do not have the physical ability to climb up a ladder can feel what it’s like to be high up in a tree, but will still be completely safe.

There will be many different slides, including stainless steel slides for people with cochlear implants, because plastic slides cause static and shouldn’t be used by those with cochlear implants. There will be 12 swings, including swings with a harness system to help keep the child or adult upright and safe. There will also be a Robin Egg that rocks back and forth and can also be used for a safe space when a child gets overstimulated, a raft that rocks and holds six children and a wheelchair, and a teeter–totter that has a tactile face for those with visual impairment or sensory issues.

Parents for Joy plans to break ground on the project on May 1, 2018. The organization is still in need of approximately $120,000 to meet the projected total needed to complete the new playground. To contact or to donate to the Parents for Joy Playground project, please contact them at [email protected]. For much more information about the project, visit parentsforjoy.org.

About the author: News Staff

News staff of the A-Town Daily News wrote and edited this article from local contributors and press releases. Scott Brennan is the publisher of this newspaper and founder of Access Publishing. Connect with him on Google+, Twitter, LinkedIn, or follow his blog. He can be reached at [email protected].