LAWRENCE, Mich. (WOOD) — A fully handicap accessible playground in Lawrence will soon be able to expand, thanks in part to a group called the100 + Women Who Care in Van Buren County.
The playground at the Bert Goens Learning Center, which serves Van Buren County student with special needs, needed accessibility upgrades.
Two years ago, the center completed the first phase of upgrades to the park through grants from the Michigan Masonic Charitable Foundation and the Michigan Economic Development Corporation.
Phase one cost roughly $200,000.
Susan Reynolds, the center’s principal, says the playground opened the world for her students.
“Seeing students who aren’t able-bodied interact with their peers and being able to actually play, and get out and have fun has really been great,” Reynolds said. “Now we’d like to move on to the next phase to expand the park.”
The expansion would cost significantly less than the original rebuild. It would include additional slides, swings and workout equipment for older students.
“We serve students from kindergarten to 26-years-old,” Reynolds said. “Phase two is going to be great. We won’t have as many lines for the swings and more kids will be able to do different things.”
Phase two just needed additional funding.
“I’ve been in the early child (field) for 10 years, and I knew a lot about the playground fundraisers and the project,” Angela Burd of the women’s group. “I worked with a lot of the special needs kids in that building with the old playground.”
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