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Kids Konnection

by Stacey Paretti Rase
photography by Stephen Faure

The idea started simply with a group of nine women who dreamed of a playground in St. Tammany Parish that would allow true accessibility to children with special needs. Just two and a half years later, that group saw their dream become a reality in December at the opening of the northshore’s first “boundless playground”— the Kids Konnection. Located at the St. Tammany Trailhead on Koop Drive in Mandeville, the playground is the result of a seven-week blitz build involving parents, professionals and community volunteers.

“We gave very deliberate thought to the design,” says Mary Ann Haase, construction chairwoman, noting that the design keeps in mind the heightened safety concerns related to individuals with special needs. From its rubber-tiled floor that easily accommodates wheelchairs to a special slide designed for kids with cochlear implants, no aspect of the playground was ignored. The area provides for 70 percent accessibility and incorporates a variety of stations that build cognitive, social, motor and sensory skills, including opportunities for sand and water play, music, climbing, balancing, swinging and imaginary play.

“The build was such a blast!” says Haase. “So many people took true, personal ownership in this project. We were all shocked at how the whole community embraced the idea that all people should be equal.” She says the project’s main aim is to emphasize that by playing together, children grow to understand that we are all more alike than different and that we all have more abilities than disabilities. “People really got that,” Haase adds. “That was the most wonderful part of this whole project.”