Erika Bilan, elementary school teacher at Churchbridge Public School, organized a health class project stemming from a simple objective; her class was challenged to write a letter to the government about something they want to improve or achieve in the town or area. There was a vast-amount of impactful topics handed in by all of the students in her class.
Abbygail Siwy and Bethany Rooke took on the topic of the lack of wheel-chair accessible playgrounds in Churchbridge.
It is interesting, but unfortunate, that there are no playgrounds in Churchbridge at the moment that are friendly to those with limited mobility.
eSSENTIAL Accessibility, who advocate for accessibility, made a statement that access is essential; the group said, “More than 6 million Canadians over the age of 15 have one or more disabilities of some kind, whether it’s related to hearing, vision, mobility, memory or something else. That’s one in five (22%) of the country’s population, according to Statistics Canada. For these individuals, being able to participate in society on par with their fellow citizens – shop in the same places, learn at the same schools, read the same online information – is a fundamental right.”
Bethany Rooke explained the class project. “For Health we have to write a letter to the government about something we want to do around town or in the area. We decided to do the wheel-chair accessible playground.”
Bethany and Abbygail mentioned they have friends that are limited to how they can use the current play structures in town; they feel the same play opportunities should be provided to all kids.
Abbygail added, “If someone breaks their leg and can’t go to the parks, there will still be somewhere to go.”
There is a plan in place by the Churchbridge Public School to make their playground wheel-chair accessible in a future phase of its development. Phase two of the playground renewal will soon see the addition of accessible and inclusive equipment which has been purchased; it will be installed at CPS in the spring. Bethany and Abbygail are taking the initiative to create more play opportunities for their friends with limited mobility on top of the future school playground development.
The girls are putting forth a practical idea and are planning to see the idea come to fruition. With the idea coming from two young students involved in a Health class project, some may feel the plan is just an idea; Abbygail and Bethany feel otherwise. The pair are so passionate about the project that they are going door-to-door to petition residents of Churchbridge and they plan on addressing the town council to get the project underway.
The two students have collected signatures on a petition they hope can be proposed to the town. Abbygail explained, “I went door-to-door and a lot of adults signed. It was windy, it was cold, but I bundled up and went door-to-door.”
The girls are still collecting more signatures and Michelle and Bart Siwy can be contacted to help out.
Bethany stated, “I’m going to send a letter to the government and see if they have funding available for us.” Abbygail added that her mom printed some possible grants and the girls are looking into them further.
The end-goal is to fundraise for a new playground on the North East side of town.
There was a playground there previously, near the Lutheran Church parking lot. With the need for the mobility-friendly playground, the old location is a fitting development area.
When asked what their next step is or the project, Abbygail answered, “To get a team, and get a letter out to see what happens. We will take it to council, and as soon as possible we want this in. I will be bringing the petition to the town hall to show them after the letter is sent out.”
CPS Teacher Erika Bilan stated, “As a class we watched a video about Sarah Cronk, a 15-year-old who decided to write 101 letters asking people to help her reach her goal of a more inclusive world. Only 1 letter was answered, but that 1 letter changed everything for more than 15,000 students and she created Generation Spirit. I then challenged my class to think of a change they would like to see in their world or to find a cause to support and then write a letter to ask for support. When Abby came to me with her idea and all of the work she had already completed after the first day, campaigning and gathering signatures, I was blown away. She is passionate about everything she does and is conscientious about making the world a more inclusive place. I spoke about Abby’s project to the class, to give some ideas to other students, and Bethany quickly joined in to help. Bethany is kind and compassionate and a perfect partner to help Abby. I am proud of the work her and Bethany have done, and I am excited to see where this project goes and hope to help in any way I can.”