When a group of self-described “crazy” teachers decided they wanted to make recess more enjoyable for special-needs students they didn't really know what they were getting into.
But four years, many fundraisers and more than $20,000 later, their vision — an even grander vision, really — has come to fruition.
She can swing by herself
Nearly two dozen Coyote Trail Elementary School students who at one time had no option but to sit back and watch their peers play can now swing on equipment that is capable of supporting them even when they are unable to support themselves.
Paved paths make the equipment more accessible for students in wheelchairs and also serve as a space for children to ride tricycles.
There is a tortoise habitat, a sensory mural and sensory tables, and a bench swing for all of the school’s students to enjoy.
Student Aulton Grubbs rests with Special Education aid Courtney Cameron at the new adaptive playground at Coyote Trail Elementary in Marana.
Gianna, a Coyote Trail third-grader who has cerebral palsy, is particularly fond of the new wheelchair swing, her mother Dixie DeBonis says.
“Being able to swing by herself is a thrill and joy for her,” DeBonis said. “It gives her more independence to do things on her own. This has opened up a whole new world for Gianna and for that I’m grateful.”
That’s exactly what the special education team at Coyote Trail was going for when they thought the idea up, said teacher Mellodie Stratman.
“We just wanted more for our students — for them to enjoy life and experience things like all kids — so that’s why we’ve worked at this so diligently,” she said. “All of the women I work with are truly amazing people and they are there with their hearts totally into this. We’re all a bunch of crazy women but we get a lot done. You put a challenge in front of them and they go for it all of the time.”
How they did it
To get to this point, the special education department at the Marana school sold hair ribbons, sponsored Parents’ Night Out/Kids’ Night In movie events and a fall festival to raise upwards of $5,000 — an amount that was matched by the school’s Parent-Teacher-Friends organization.
The biggest infusion of cash stemmed from a letter that was written by then-sixth-grader Andrew Weaver to the Rotary Club of Marana.
The letter was written as part of a service project taken on by the school’s gifted education teacher who had students write letters to businesses and groups requesting help with the playground effort.
The rotary club has a history of partnering with the Marana School District and the student’s request piqued the organization’s interest, said President Mary Straus.
The group connected with Stratman to learn about the school’s needs and asked what they could do to help.
Think bigger
“Mellodie thought that maybe we could help her build some flower boxes — she was accustomed to shoestring budgets as all of our teachers are,” Straus said.
But pushed by the rotary club to think bigger, Stratman came up with the design and concepts that students have been enjoying since the school year started up last month.
In all, the Rotary Club of Marana contributed $12,000 to the effort and the Dove Mountain Rotary Club kicked in another $1,000.
Rotary club members didn’t stop there. They put in work on the actual construction and got help from companies like the Chasse Building Team and Sun Valley Masonry which donated skills, time and supplies.
Partnerships like the one that has been formed with the Rotary Club of Marana have been crucial for the Marana School District at a time when public school budgets have been consistently slashed by the state.
For Stratman, the collaboration speaks to what the theme of the playground project has become: “Alone we can do so little, together we can do so much.”
“We can’t believe it has finally come to this because we’ve worked so long and hard at this that it never seemed possible for it to be this big,” Stratman said. “We would have been happy with just a wheelchair swing and we have so much more because of everybody else. We’ve been blessed.”
Take a peek at the playground
The community is invited to a ribbon cutting ceremony for Coyote Trail's new therapeutic and exploratory playground on Sept. 30 at 5 p.m.
Coyote Trail’s new playground equipment is not open to the public but there are a few parks around town with specialized equipment including La Madera Park, Country Club Annex Park, Purple Heart Park and James D. Kriegh Park.
The Milagro Playground at Jacobs Park is the only one in the city specifically designed for children with disabilities.
A new playground at Reid Park that will have two platform swings is still in the design phase.
Other schools with adaptive equipment include the Emily Meschter Early Learning Center in Flowing Wells and the Rillito Center in Amphitheater. Vail's Sycamore Elementary just ordered interactive play panels for children with limited mobility.
