The inclusive playground planned for Stranahan Elementary School will include all children in the Sylvania community — not just students.
With its access to a nearby Metropark and being a draw for baseball games, Emily Earp, a reading specialist at the school, said the new playground at 3840 N. Holland-Sylvania Rd., will be a gathering point for families.
“This isn’t just going to be just a Stranahan Elementary playground,” Mrs. Earp said. “It will be a great place for the community.”
Playgrounds should be reflective of friendship, kindness, and acceptance, she said.
“In elementary school, play is a big part of a child’s day at school,” Mrs. Earp said, adding it’s key to social, emotional, and physical development.
“Right now, we’re doing them a disservice ... because we have to exclude students from playing on the playground,” she said. “It’s sending a bad message.”
The Stranahan Parent Teacher Association is spearheading a $650,000 fund-raising effort to redo the playground so children with disabilities can use it.
Tara Haye, PTA president, said her son, Isaac, 8, who will be in the third grade at the school, is looking forward to wheeling on the rubber surface and spinning on a “we go round.”
Isaac has several complex medical needs, including cerebral palsy, epilepsy, and autism, and uses a wheelchair.
“There will be all sorts of ramping throughout. There will be various swings ... shared swings, friendship swings so that multiple children can play with them together,” Mrs. Haye said.
Sparrow Brochu, 8, is also going to be in the third grade at Stranahan. She has cerebral palsy and uses crutches.
“One of the things I can’t do is the steps to get on stuff are too high for me,” she said, adding that she’s looking forward to the zipline that is planned for the playground.
The current playground separates her daughter from the other children, Sparrow’s mother, Andi Brochu said.
“A lot of days she just sits on the blacktop over here,” Ms. Brochu said. “The major thing is the mulch. It’s the absolute pits.”
The new playground will have a rubber surface and no mulch, Mrs. Haye said. The play structures will have ramps, not steps, and sensory boards. A roller slide will allow a child with cochlear implants to swish down without any static, she said.
“We have so many different families within the community that have blended families, where you have a child with a disability or a handicap and you have able-bodied children within their same family — and they often can’t play together,” she said. “The parks around here are great for thrill-seekers and kids who can run and get around. But if they have a child in their family that’s in a wheelchair or uses any sort of mobility aid, that child is left sitting there.”
The new playground will have something for everyone, Mrs. Haye said, adding that some of the current equipment will be retained.
“We’ll have a wide range of equipment, with varying degree of challenge. So a child who can do a little bit, they can still have fun. And a child who can climb and get all crazy can also do lots of things, too,” she said.
The group has raised about half of the $650,000 goal. Funding includes $15,000 from the Lott-Conlon Foundation, $25,000 from the Helping Hens Fund from the Greater Toledo Community Foundation, $25,000 from Sylvania Township, and $100,000 from an anonymous donor.
They are coming off a sold-out Friday fund-raiser at the Wildwood Preserve MetroPark, which raised $34,000.
Mrs. Haye said fund-raising started in earnest in August.
“We knew we didn’t have anything like this in Sylvania — or real close proximity,” she said. “A lot of families were driving out to Perrysburg.”
Wood County Plays is a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization that designs, fund-raises, and builds fully inclusive play spaces. It has built two playgrounds in Perrysburg and Bowling Green and has another in the works in Fostoria.
Mrs. Haye said they have relied on the group for advice, and its president, Ryan Wichman, was the host at their Friday fund-raiser.
The Stranahan Elementary playground was picked because it is centrally located in Sylvania, has ballparks that are packed with families, and backs up to a Wildwood trail, Mrs. Haye said. When school isn’t in session, the park is open to anyone, she said.
The reach could be up to 10,000 children in the immediate area, Mrs. Haye said. There are 8,000 students enrolled in the Sylvania school district; 13 percent of the students are classified as having a special need, she said.
“Again, it’s not just about those needs,” Mrs. Haye said. It’s about all children understanding “just because someone is different than me doesn’t mean I can’t be their friend and play with them. That’s what a project like this does — it helps send that message.”
They plan to start putting down the surface in May and have the new playground open for the start of the 2025-26 school year.
“It’s not just about Isaac or Sparrow, it’s about making something that the entire community can really access and enjoy, and play on together,” Mrs. Haye said.
The Stranahan Elementary Parent Teacher Association was organized in 1990 and is a registered 501(c)3 nonprofit.
For more information, visit sites.google.com/view/stranahan-pta-inclusive-play/home .
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