Those leading a community initiative to build a new park in Ringgold for families with disabled members hope a site will be named in 2023.
Crossroads Unity Family Park has been in development for about eight years and benefits from a partnership with the City of Ringgold, said Millie Cheek, chair of the park’s committee. The volunteers are raising money for the park and to build its play features, she said in a phone interview, while the city will provide the land, park maintenance and infrastructure like parking lots and rainwater harvesting.
“What makes it (the park) unique is that the park is fully accessible,” Cheek said. “It will meet the needs of children with special abilities – we all have special abilities – with a special focus on adults with disabilities.”
The group sold out a New Year’s Eve fundraiser at Ringgold Depot, Cheek said, and another concert fundraiser is planned for the summer of 2023.
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Cheek said the park will be built on city-owned land and she expects the city council to approve a site soon. This approval will allow organizers to write grants for the park.
The park will have ramps to a platform so family members in wheelchairs can play on the same level as their children. A tree house structure will be the centerpiece of the park and will have a series of ramps leading to a patio. Inside the treehouse, there will be a room with interactive exhibits designed for visitors with autism.
Some kids using wheelchairs have never descended a slide, Cheek said, but the ramp and platform design will allow them to have that experience. A wheelchair swing is also being considered, she said.
These designs will open up many opportunities for family members of all abilities, Cheek said.
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Plans for the park were drawn up by New York-based Play By Design, and its construction is expected to cost $750,000. Cheek said that number includes the work, but she said the 11-member park committee expects to recruit volunteers for construction. Along with fundraisers, Cheek said money will be raised for the park by giving individuals and companies the opportunity to sponsor parts of the play equipment.
Cheek said that once a site is chosen and a construction date is set, organizers will need volunteers to help with construction. But for now, she said one of the best ways to help is by spreading the word about the project.
Donations can be made on the group’s website, crossroadsunity.org. Organizers can also be reached at 423-313-2771 or crossroadsunity@gmail.com.
The park will be dedicated to all veterans of the United States and the memory of Troy Dyer, a Navy veteran who lost his legs, among other injuries, on his second tour in Vietnam. Dyer didn’t let his loss hold him back, Cheek said, and his work as a brick and stone mason can be seen throughout Catoosa County.
The Committee’s “Welcome to Summer” concert is scheduled for June 24 at the Northwest Georgia Amphitheater in Ringgold. 2023 will be the third year of the fundraising concert and will feature bands from the county singing including Low Down Revival, Neon Moon, Iron Horse and another band the organizers are yet to announce.
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Tickets for the concert go on sale on February 1 on the group’s website.
Catoosa County Commissioner Vanita Hullander said she got involved with the project while she was the county coroner because the park was so much needed in the community. Dyer, who has since died, Hullander said, was her brother-in-law.
Cheek said she has always been community-minded and became involved after the group’s first project – Little General Children’s Park – completed in the summer of 2008. Cheek said it was easy working with Ringgold officials, citing their work at both parks.
“We want to go further than a park that uniquely meets the needs of both children and adults,” Cheek said. “We want it (Crossroads Unity Family Park) to be a model for other parks because of the need to involve all family members and that’s our goal for this park.”
Cheek said she learned from talking about the project that most people never thought about the lack of accessibility in most playgrounds, but when people heard about the park everyone thought it was a good idea.
Contact Andrew Wilkins at awilkins@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6659.
Crossroads Unity Family Park Committee / A close-up screenshot of New York-based Play By Design’s Crossroads Unity Family Park plans.
