Foundation’s mission is a fitting tribute to honor exceptional child
There is a new playground at C.W. Longer Elementary School in Hollidaysburg, PA. With lush green trees as its backdrop and located near a community recreation center among tennis courts, soccer and football fields and walking trails, this park is in no way ordinary. 

Officially opened after Labor Day 2011, this all-ability playground was built to honor an exuberant little boy who was an inspiration to those who knew him.

Zack Hinish was just five years old when he passed away from complications of a life-long neurological condition. To honor their son’s memory, Tami and Jeff Hinish established a non-profit foundation dedicated to making a difference in the lives of children, especially those with physical or cognitive disabilities.

It was during their search for a fitting outreach project that Tami remembered the difficulties Zack experienced while he was a student at C.W. Longer Elementary School.
“I noticed that during school recess there was nowhere for the children with disabilities to play. The playground was comprised of old metal structures with wood chip surfacing. It wasn’t accessible for the children with special needs, and in Zack’s class, most of his classmates use wheel chairs.”

Since Zack was in a Multiple Disabilities Support classroom, a class for students with involved special needs, most of his classmates were excluded from playing on the playground simply because the structures weren’t accessible to them.

It was this memory combined with a comment made by one of the multiple disabilities therapists at the school that led Tami and Jeff to the foundation’s project. The Zack Hinish Foundation would build its community’s first All-Ability playground and it would be open to everyone.

Tami admits that she wasn’t sure where to begin so she started searching the Internet and requesting catalogues from a number of play structure providers. Not only was it overwhelming, but in her research, no one had only positive things to say about the playground vendors they had chosen.

Finally, Tami spoke with a woman who’d helped build a local playground in Altoona, PA that recommended Curtis Bischof and General Recreation. “This woman was also a mother, and had a no-nonsense attitude. I trusted her opinion.”

Tami recalls that immediately upon calling Curtis she had a sense of ease: “He took us seriously. We met in person and that was it.” The Hinishes started by determining the features they felt were necessary and an additional “wish list” of items to include if they raised more funds. Curtis guided them through every step by advising them on what features would and wouldn’t work in an all-access site.

Working with Tami and Jeff was a special experience for Curtis, too. “This project was really special for me and I was honored to be a part of it,” says Curtis.
 
The Hinishes organized a four-day build to complete the park and the more than 70 volunteers assembled each of the components. The final result is an all inclusive play park where everyone can play, even adults. “It was awesome to see parents playing with their children--not just standing around or watching…I’d never seen this before. It was amazing.”

To see other playground projects we have completed Click Here


To learn more about The Zack Hinish Foundation, visit www.zackhinishfoundation.org. For more information on General Recreation’s products and services, contact us at 800-726-4793 or email This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it .

The 960 students at Bear Creek Intermediate School in Elizabethtown, PA, were faced with a big decision last school year: they had the opportunity to vote on two new playground concepts for their school.

Bear Creek’s Principal, Dr. Annette Spagnolo, worked closely with Steve Hemler, their General Recreation sales consultant, to develop two distinct designs.  Dr. Spagnolo’s goal was to build play areas that would challenge all skill levels among the student body, as well as accommodate 300 children at any given recess time.   Based on their needs, Steve introduced Dr. Spagnolo and her team to Landscape Structures’ EVOS™ and Play Naturally® playsystems.

“We’d never seen anything like it [Evos™] before,” says Dr. Spagnolo. “And, working with Steve was phenomenal. We trusted him with all the details. He gave us reliable time frames and developed effective teams. We also asked him to develop two choices for playgrounds for us to present to our students, parents and staff for feedback.”
Based on the students’ feedback to connect the Play Naturally rock climbers together, Steve incorporated a PlayBooster® bridge in between the rocks.  “It was important to them that the big rocks were connected,” explains Dr. Spagnolo. “The students love the idea of being able to run across from one climbing rock to the other.”   In addition, they wanted the play area to fit in well with the nearby wetland and surrounding landscape. The color palette is brown, green and plum.

The Evos-focused play area has a different look and feel. Steve designed it with a “college campus” theme in mind: the play equipment colors complement the existing color palette of the new school. He also included ADA-accessible swings in the final design.

Since the kick-off of the new school year, Dr. Spagnolo has received tremendous feedback from parents and students alike. “During our orientation for the new playground, there were smiles on everyone’s faces!” she recalls.   The playgrounds are turning out to be more than a place for recess. During one of the teacher workdays, the teachers used it for team building: they went on a scavenger hunt that took them through the new playground.

Ron Nobile, Director of Physical Plant for Elizabethtown Area School District, adds that the playground’s ability to challenge their students’ skills will work well with the Physical Education program. Nobile had worked with Steve in the past on a variety of projects. Nobile describes Steve as “the consummate professional” that he could rely on to meet all standards, codes and age-appropriate requirements.  “We needed a professional guiding us,” says Nobile. “Steve really took the steps to make this entire project a collaborative effort. Our students’ ideas were very important to us.”

To see other playground project success stories Click Here

Landscape Structures, the nation’s leading designer and manufacturer of commercial playground equipment, has stepped into the soft surfacing market with its recent acquisition of Pebble-Flex^®.

Based out of Eatonton, N.J., Pebble-Flex specializes in providing comfortable, safe, durable, and easily installed soft surface materials. Its main product lines, Pebble-Flex and Aquaflex, blend technology and practicality to enable schools, parks, and pools to improve the safety of their facilities and the kids who use them. The break-through technology design uses aliphatic polyurethane chemistry, making Pebble-Flex products chlorine resistant and strong against UV light. 

Landscape Structures’ mission is to enhance children’s lives by fostering and creating inspiring play experiences while honoring the environment. With the acquisition of Pebble-Flex, Landscape Structures not only tackles soft surfacing and water play sites—a unique and niche market—but also can provide even more complete play system solutions.

The two industry leaders and their shared values will benefit their customers for years to come. For more information about Pebble-Flex, contact General Recreation, Inc at 800-726-4793, email This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it .   Or CLICK HERE to view the PebbleFlex/AquaFlex website.

It’s easy to make a brand-new structure look inviting and durable in a catalog, but how well does it hold up after three years (or more!) of wear, tear and weather?

While marketing materials and websites are helpful resources, we recommend that you take a playground field trip to see and touch what’s out there before making the decision to buy.

What to do. This field trip is not a spectator sport! Be sure to jump on the decks, slide down the slides, climb everything, and play on each structure as much as possible.

What to look for. During your visit, examine the playground equipment according to three key criteria:

Safety. Are all the playground components connected tightly? Are surfaces—especially handholds—PVC coated to protect children's hands from temperature extremes? Are there any sharp metal edges, like exposed fasteners or expanded metal coming through worn PVC coating? Do the slides feature slidehoods with built-in handbars for safer sliding?

Durability. All play structures look good when they're new. But how well do they stand up after three to five years of hard play? The most obvious signs of excessive wear are rusting or worn weldments (the metal that connects the parts of components), sagging, warped or cracked slides, and "moving parts" that no longer move.

Play value. Overhead play events? Bridges? Interactive play panels? Look for play structures complex enough to challenge kids with a variety of play experiences that help them develop coordination and confidence.

How to determine “play value”?

• Look for bridges and overhead events that move. Movement creates complexity, challenges children and develops their coordination and confidence.

• Look for interactive play panels. Play with them. Do they work as intended? Interactive panels challenge children and develop imaginative play and hand-eye coordination.

• Be wary of play panels that are merely pictures with no moving parts or action required. These panels have little play value for children of any age.

• Don't forget to talk to the families there and watch children playing on the structure. What events do they prefer?
If you have lingering questions or concerns after your field trip, contact your Gen Rec sales consultant. Or, before you go, invite your consultant to come along with you. They can help point out the features you should examine most and answer any questions you may have.  Contact Gen Rec at 800-726-4793 for more information, email This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it .