Welcome to the Riverview Community Playground Project

Imagine it is a beautiful day, the sun is shining and all of your friends are running out to the playground to enjoy the pleasure of just being a kids. You push your wheels as fast as you can in an effort to join them, but are stopped just short of the goal by sawdust, wood chips, and pea gravel. Frustrated you sit and watch as your friends swing, slide, jump, and play with the knowledge that you are stuck just watching.

This is a daily fact for many of the kids in our community with a physical disability, they are stuck on the sidelines only able to watch their peers. Many families who have a member or members with disabilities face challenges that affect their future.  These challenges can include struggling with interpersonal relationships, emotional health, poor integration into peers’ play, lack of accessible fitness equipment and separation from their community.  Playgrounds are also a traditional site for families to interact with other families. Often these playground designs required persons with disabilities to sit on the sidelines. 

Finally there is an answer, a universal playground! Universal design addresses many challenges by providing an area where persons of all ages can come an interact in a safe, accessible and fun way.  The Riverview Community Playground Project (RCP) addresses emotional play, physical play, full access and fitness concerns by bringing these themes together into an environment that has something for everyone. 

Creativity panels run through out the playground, interactive panels provide information about nature, the drum circle creates a natural outlet for creative energies, balance pods, diggers, slides, ramps, climbers, and swing incorporate several different types of fitness activities.  There is literally something for everyone to participate in no matter their level of ability. The playground also provides a “classroom” for several of our local colleges/universities who have special education studies.

The Riverview Community Playground Project is just the beginning. It is our goal to have this playground move from a dream to a reality in the Spring of 2009. We invite you to join us in building a place where all of our children can come together to build a stronger community for our future.

Dream, Hope, Play

BIG NEWS!!!!

3/25/09 - Check out the new RCP Fundraising Cards, they are good for a year!

2/20/09 - Thanks to generous grants/donations from the Spirit Mountain Community Fund and City of Independence we are starting to make serious progress on the Riverview Community Playground. We would like to thank all of our donors, you are helping us to make a Universal Change! A very special thanks also to all of the Central High Seniors and Teachers who have helped our project grow. With your help we are moving forward!