St. Marys, OH August 7, 2023 – After over two years of planning and fundraising, one of the final “pieces of the puzzle” has come into place for the upcoming St. Marys All Abilities Park.  The park is the brainchild of Ashley Randolph, Realtor® at Cisco Realty.  Ashley and local volunteers and businesses have worked hard to make this park a reality.

Expected to break ground later this month, the St. Marys All Abilities Park will be a brand-new park that will have features for children of all ages, regardless of their sensory, cognitive, or physical challenges.  Currently, St. Marys does not have a playground dedicated to children of all abilities.  This park will be built in Mill Park next to the splash pad, which is fully handicapped accessible.  The park will feature a wheelchair accessible swing, one ADA compliant high back swing, multiple sensory panels, local nature garden, slides, and small tables for children to gather.  All pieces of equipment will encourage children to play together, with a little bit of something for everyone.

The $5,000 National Association of Realtors® Placemaking grant, awarded to the local Midwestern Ohio Association of Realtors® (MOAR) was presented today to Randolph on behalf of the St. Marys Community Foundation by MOAR President, Kyle Springs, MOAR Association Executive, Megan Wise, along with Krista Hubbell who serves on the MOAR Board of Directors and Amy Frilling who is an affiliate member of MOAR.  This grant will be used toward the purchase of the wheelchair-accessible swing and the pergola in which it will be contained.  Up until this point, the project has been funded entirely via direct donations and fundraising from private donors, local volunteers, and local area businesses.

This grant will help complete the “puzzle” to make this park a reality.  “Through fundraising, the park will be possible; and, without the support of our local Realtor® members, fundraising would not be as successful or as smooth as it has been,” Randolph states.  Realtors® live, work and volunteer in their communities and take immense pride in their work to make our communities better places to live, work and raise a family.  Speaking on behalf of MOAR, President Kyle Springs states, “We are excited to be able to support this great project that will benefit the children and families in this community for many years to come.”

The National Association of Realtors® offers Placemaking Grants to state and local Realtor® Associations around the country to create new public spaces and destinations in a community, such as turning a parking spot into a people spot (parklet) or a vacant lot into a pocket park or garden.

For more information on the St. Marys All-Abilities Park, visit the project’s Facebook page at www.facebook.com/St-Marys-All-Abilities-Park-102022415322791/.  To find out more about the National Association of Realtors® placemaking program, visit https://realtorparty.realtor/community-outreach/housing-opportunity.