Shane's Inspiration

Shane's Inspiration is a California-based nonprofit organization that works toward creating accessible playgrounds and supporting inclusive play, through projects in the United States and abroad.

Adaptive swings at Shane's Inspiration playground in Griffith Park, Los Angeles

Origins
Griffith Park playground equipment with a castle theme
Griffith Park playground equipment with a rocket theme

Shane's Inspiration was founded in 1998, by television producer Scott A. Williams and his wife Catherine Curry-Williams, and their friend Tiffany Harris, in memory of Scott and Catherine's son Shane, who died in infancy from the effects of spinal muscular atrophy.[1][2] They were inspired in part by the work of Amy Jaffe Barzach, founder of Boundless Playgrounds a few years earlier.[3] The flagship Shane's Inspiration playground in Griffith Park opened in the autumn of 2000.[4]

Projects and programs

Since the first playground was established, more than fifty community playgrounds have followed, large and small, with involvement from Shane's Inspiration which may include help with design, sourcing materials, grant writing, working with local governments, or other steps in the process. Among their completed projects are Aidan's Place in Westwood,[5] Brandon's Village in Calabasas,[6] Chanticleer Park in Live Oak,[7][8] SEBA Park in Elgin, Illinois,[9] Winwood's Enchanted Playground in Hutchinson, Kansas,[10] Fernangeles Park in Sun Valley, California,[11] and inclusive playgrounds in Cuenca, Ecuador[12] and Bangalore, India.[13]

In addition to the building of physical playgrounds, Shane's Inspiration has developed curricula and social programming to sustain inclusive play at the sites it develops.[14] Shane's Inspiration has also collaborated with Too Small to Fail and equipment manufacturer Landscape Structures Inc., to create playground signage in English and Spanish that encourages conversations between parents and children.[15]

Fundraising activities for Shane's Inspiration include the annual "Walk and Roll" event in Griffith Park.[16][17]

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References
  1. "Local Couple Gives Disabled Children a Place to Play after Loss of Son" CBS Los Angeles (May 13, 2014).
  2. Duane Noriyuki, "Always In Their Heart" Los Angeles Times (April 1, 1998).
  3. Lorenzo Benet and Christina Tapper, "A Chance to Play for Disabled Children" People Magazine 70(14)(October 6, 2008).
  4. Shane's Inspiration - Griffith Park, City of Los Angeles Department of Recreation and Parks.
  5. Duane Noriyuki, "In a Boy's Memory, the Gift of Play" Los Angeles Times (December 5, 2001).
  6. Adam Wills, "Calabasas Evens Playing Field for Special-Needs Kids" Jewish Journal of Greater L. A. (October 19, 2006).
  7. Noel Smith, "A Story of Determination and Collaboration" Aptos Times (September 26, 2015).
  8. Mariana Hicks, "Local Moms Team Up to Create a Place for All Kids to Play" KIONRight Now (June 23, 2015).
  9. Janelle Walker, "Despite Budget Cuts, SEBA Playground Opens to All Needs" Chicago Tribune (August 8, 2015).
  10. Ken Stephens, "City, Donors to Open Inclusive Playground at New Park on Friday" Hutchinson News (June 17, 2014).
  11. Daniel Serrano, "L. A.'s New Inclusive Playground in Sun Valley is Ready for Fun" Los Angeles Register (August 1, 2014).
  12. "Cuenca tendrá el primer Parque Inclusivo Infantil de Ecuador" Vicepresidencia, Republica del Ecuador (October 17, 2012).
  13. Sruthi Atmakur, "Focus: Playgrounds of Inclusion" The State of the World's Children 2013: Children with Disabilities (UNICEF Publications).
  14. Angela Hokanson, "Program Has Kids' Group Up to Learn about Special Needs" Glendale News-Press (November 30, 2007).
  15. Christina Samuels, "Laundromats, Playgrounds, to Promote Early-Childhood Literacy" Education Week (June 10, 2015).
  16. Brittany Scheffler, "Run, Walk, and Roll for Shane's Inspiration" Canyon News (September 6, 2015).
  17. Danny LoPriore, "Yonkers' Scott Williams Writes NCIS, Builds Playgrounds" Yonkers Daily Voice (October 1, 2012).
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