JCCNS debuts Jonathan Derr Splash Pad

MARBLEHEAD — The Jewish Community Center of the North Shore celebrated the official opening and ribbon-cutting of the Jonathan Derr Splash Pad – a new, inclusive water feature located at the JCCNS outdoor pool.

Family, friends, and supporters gathered on a sunny summer morning to honor Jonathan and commemorate his trailblazing impact on the JCCNS. The grand opening of the splash pad also served as the official launch of the JCCNS Capital Campaign, in which the agency seeks to raise $2.5 million for capital  improvements to the facility that will serve generations to come.

JCCNS Executive Director Marty Schneer spoke of the JCCNS’s commitment to always being a place where everyone is welcome.

“We know that our work here is essential for the extended community, and we are committed to making the improvements to both our facility and our programs so that we can continue to be a gathering place for all,” Schneer said. “Some of you grew up at the J and have shared with me the various opportunities that the JCC provided for you because of its leadership, staff, donors, and programs. We want to be able to continue to provide that same extraordinary level of service for at least another 50+ years, in the same warm and welcoming environment that we nurture today.”

Derr spoke of his long history with the JCC, from when his mother, Jo Ann Simons first brought him there as an infant.

“The JCC has been a home since I went to day care here when I was just a few weeks old,” he said. “I learned to swim at the JCC and how to use vending machines. I was also on a championship basketball team here. I went to KinderCamp and Camp Simchah …and I also attended after-school programs where I took computer classes, played sports, and acted in plays. My first job was as a volunteer here and that sent me on a path to be a good employee…. The JCC will always be a special place for me and the splash pad will be a special place for kids to play.”

JCCNS Director of Development Sam Andler acknowledged the generosity of an unnamed donor.

“We’re here today to dedicate this splash pad in, what I feel is, the most meaningful way,” Andler said. “The generous donor, whose philanthropy underwrote the construction of the splash pad, was offered the opportunity to name the splash pad. Rather than taking credit for the gift by naming it after himself or his family, he chose to name it for Jonathan Derr – a true testament to the donor’s dedication and appreciation for the JCC of the North Shore’s journey and commitment to inclusion.”

Andler noted that when Simons first brought Derr, who has Down syndrome, to the JCC, “the world at that time wasn’t inclusive and welcoming” for children with special needs. “When other schools weren’t willing or able to enroll Jonathan, then JCCNS Early Childhood Director Ursula Block simply said, ‘Jonathan needs to be loved, hugged and fed like any other child and if his cardiologist says it’s OK, then its fine.’ Jonathan’s enrollment and success paved the way for countless students to follow after him, and the JCCNS is proud to have served hundreds of neurodiverse infants, toddlers, and students.”

The splash pad has been in use for a few weeks by the JCCNS Summer at the J KinderCamp and Camp Simchah campers and will be open to JCCNS members and guests all summer.

Funds raised through the capital campaign will also be used for: front entrance airlock for enhanced security, a new energy-efficient boiler, new pool deck for the indoor pool, new accessible playground surfaces, parking lot paving and lighting, early childhood classroom upgrades and Weiss-Kirstein room upgrades.

For more information about JCCNS programs and facilities, please visit JCCNS.org .

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