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J4cob's Park Plans

J4cob's Park

UNOFFICIAL

J4COB'S PARK

PLAN

We want J4cob's Park to be a place that would have been Jacob's favorite place to go; a place where he could do all of the things he loved to do; a place he could have enjoyed at any stage of his short, beautiful life. A place where everyone can play together, Because Everyone Should Get to Play; that's what Jacob showed was in his heart by how he treated everyone, and cheered for everyone, no matter who they were.

Jacob's favorite pastime, sport, hobby, and overall thing to do, was play hockey. He did it every where, as often as possible. There were hockey nets set up all over his house; the basement, the living room, the hallways, the driveway, etc. If there wasn't a net available, he would stick handle and practice tricks with the puck. Aside from his family and friends, hockey was Jacob's first love. Even in the hospital, it was one of the first things that motivated Jacob to sit in a chair next to the bed, which was an enormous endeavor for our little champion. On another seldom-occurring energetic day, he took on his dad in an air hockey game and won "the championship." It was a proud and rare happy moment for Jacob and his mom and dad.

Jacob also really enjoyed watching American Ninja Warrior, and emulating the ninjas on the courses they fearlessly embraced. He cheered for everyone. He sincerely thought everyone was going to hit a buzzer. And when some ultimately failed, he was sorely disappointed for them. Jacob didn't have a favorite ninja, because he wanted the best for every person. He had the heart of a true ninja.

We are combining these two interests of Jacob's into one place we think he would have loved; a place we hope everyone can love; J4cob's Park. We are still working on the final design, but we want to share some of the basic ideas we have so far. Thank you for your interest, support, and love.

Power Point Presentation

J4cob's Rink

J4cob's Rink will be an outdoor dek hockey rink. The final details are being decided upon, but some ideas of what it will look like are pictured below. More information is available in the October 9th Power Point Presentation.

J4cob's Playground

Jacob loved American Ninja Warrior, obstacle courses, and just being a kid and playing in general. Our goal is to have an American Ninja Warrior inspired playground. The pictures below are some of the ideas that we are moving toward including in J4cob's Park. More information is available in the October 9th Power Point Presentation.

Team J4cob

We also have some other ideas we are going to incorporate that will hopefully let even more people feel included and part of Team J4cob. We have a quarter mile walking path and a memorial tree/sitting area planned, and hope to also create more inclusion with a  community grieving garden. Please check back as we will update this section with more information as the plans become finalized.

J4cob's Park Updates

Many people have asked "where we're at" with J4cob's Park and what is the latest going on, so we're going to keep folks updated as best we can here.

June 28, 2019

After the Planning and Zoning Commission meeting in October of 2018, we were very disheartened with how everything played out. In November, we met with the Park and Recreation Commission to discuss a location they had been developing as an option. Then we took a little break from the planning side of things to regroup a little, but continued with our fundraising efforts. We had a GREAT event at the end of March with the 2nd Annual JRP 3v3 Hockey Jamboree and Open Skate!

In late April, we sent a letter to the Park and Recreation Commission (but also copied many other Town Officials and Commissions too) asking to be given a list of any and all town-owned property that the Town would be willing to entertain for J4cob's Park, regardless of the land's current state. We are still waiting to get an official list, but have heard that the Town is looking into the options. 

Our request for land was for 4-5 acres, which would preserve the original concept of J4cob's Park. This size estimate was based on the land that was being set aside for the entire quarter-mile walking track and parking area that was to accommodate the future sports fields as well at Middle Road. Admittedly, this is probably much more than we would truly need to preserve the original plan at another location. With this in mind, we are also willing to entertain smaller parcels as well, knowing that we would have to mildly adjust our plan for J4cob's Park. 

In closing, if you or anyone you know has a minimum of 2 acres (but preferably closer to 4 or 5) of land in Ellington that they would be willing to consider for J4cob's Park, please contact us or send your friends our information! Our goal is to not have to buy land so that the funds raised can go towards making the park an amazing place for everyone, but we are willing to entertain reasonable options too! 

Thank you for reading our first "blog"! Check back soon for more information!

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