My name is Angie and I have 3 children.  I do not take my children to our local playground; I cannot.  I have Multiple Sclerosis and the equipment and layout of our local park does not allow me to play with my children.  My condition, most of the time, does not let me drive a car.  Because of problems with balance and strength, I can't carry my 14 month old child.  I can't put my children into the car on my own because I cannot reach their seat belts from my chair, so the only way we can go anywhere, like the park, for some family time, is if my husband takes us all.

It just isn't worth it to me.

After all the preparation and the work involved to get the kids and I to the playground, it does not even result in me being included in their play!   The designer of our playground did not understand disabilities the way FIRST Playgrounds Inc. does.  It is not just about putting a wheelchair up on the big structure.   Once I am up there no one can move past my chair.  I cannot play "near" my children, let alone "with" my children and most "playthings" are at inappropriate heights and have no real play value.  Few parks near me are wheelchair friendly; everything is so high and I cannot reach my children.  If they should fall, it is a long way down.  In the past, my youngest children have sat with me and played games on a blanket, while everyone else played on the equipment.  Now they are too big to just sit on a blanket with their Mom and want to play with the other families in our community.

What really bothers me is that my family is being left behind and my children are not part of their community because our local playground does not support the needs of the entire family.  As a Mom I must accept this, but what about children who have Special Needs?  They too have the equal right to play alongside their peers and not be left out of play because the playground designer was not educated in Accessibility and Inclusivity.

   - Angie