Wednesday, April 4, 2012

There will always be a fight!

There are some days when you wonder if you should just give up the fight.

You sit back and realize, there will always be a fight, there will never be a day when my children will be totally treated as equal human beings.
But I have to keep fighting, each and every day, because a little boy depends on me. He depends on me not only for his total care and medical care, but his happiness, and his equality.

When we moved to Corona, we noticed that there is a park on every corner. It is very family oriented. We loved that immediately. What we didn't love, however, is that not a single park has a handicap swing.
Jaxson loves to swing, but he can not swing on a typical park swing like his little sister can.

There is just no way around it. No way to rig it to fit him. Jaxson has zero neck and zero trunk control. He needs a swing that will support his whole body.
At Carters opening ceremonies for baseball, Ray bumped into a city council member. A city council member that happened to be over the parks!
What a stroke of luck. He asked the member why no park has a handicap swing. Of course he had no idea. He got all of Ray's info, and asked him to send a picture of the swing. They talked back and forth. The member was fantastic, he stuck to his word, said they were looking up prices, and asked which park would be best to put it.

And then, of course, the ball dropped.

He emailed Ray and said that they were going to table the idea for now. That they were worried about vandalism, and wanted us to find other people that would benefit from the swing.
The only reason I can think of this swing having more vandalism, is because it has a seatbelt. In Utah, they keep the seat belts at city hall. You can either buy one, or rent one for the day. It works out great. I don't need a seat belt for Jax, he isn't going to jump out of the swing, but I'm sure other people will.
I'm very upset, sometimes I feel the only way it will work is if we buy a swing for our own backyard. I'm not even sure if it will fit on a typical swing set. But my son deserves a swing. He has a right to have fun just as any other kid does!

So for that reason, we keep fighting. We will stay on the city until at least one park has a handicap swing. We will start our search for other families in our city that have children that would benefit from a handicap swing.

We will prevail, we have to! Our children depend on us!


18 comments:

Linnea said...

Keep up the good fight! You are right it is worth it!

Be blessed

Ashlee

Becca said...

This absolutely does not sound unreasonable. I think many, many people will benefit from it, and I bet it won't be long before you find them. Come to think of it, I don't know of any playgrounds near us that have a handicap swing, either. That's a shame. I have no doubt you will win this fight, one way or another - good for you for bringing this to light in your area!!

Anonymous said...

Find your local news stations. They LOVE to do expose feel good stories. This would be a good story. Also, if the city council member also gets to have a little shine in the story, it's funny how things tend to happen over night. Just email/write/tweet/call and email again to the local news channel, (include yummy pictures of your babies!) and I bet they will pick the story up. This is the perfect time of year for that as well!

Good luck!

Runningmama said...

That sounds like a good excuse to come visit me...there are 4 of those very swings at the park we go to. But, really, I can't see why they can't get a swing, I am sure so many kids would get a lot of use out of them!

Shari said...

Lacey:

You have taught me how to fight and advocate for my children. I owe so much to you. Especially for my special needs child. I appreciate how you have taught me and it will never go unappreciated.

Shari

HaMercaz said...

Are you familiar with Shane's Inspiration? They are a non profit that builds universally accessible playgrounds and has built a lot throughout Southern California http://shanesinspiration.org/content/view/2/69/ If anyone can help, it's them!

Anonymous said...

This one may work for the back yard and it is actually a decent price for a supportive swing. And as he grows, you can order additional pieces for more support.

http://www.rehabmart.com/product/skillbuilders-swing-seats-22578.html

Stephanie said...

Correct me if I am wrong, but if these are public parks....paid for by taxpayers, I think they are required to adhere to the Americans with Disabilites Act? something to check into. maybe there is a local ARC or ACLU chapter Thwt can back you up? Good luck!

JC said...

This post actually moved me to tears. I think what you are doing is fantastic! ALL children love to swing, and Jaxson deserves one that he can go in...I hope you guys get it! This was really inspiring.

Rochelle said...

Keep on advocating for those lovies. No swings like that in our local parks either.

Anonymous said...

everyone deserves to play!!! it stinks when you have to fight for your child's right to play at the playground. :( i have faith though - jaxon and his mom -- they are world-changer!!

maybe this swing would help elimiate the fear of someone stealing/cutting belts? we have one similar at my school (ours is red/yellow, but looks the same otherwise) and it's great.

http://www.flaghouse.com/Made-For-Me-Swing-Seat-Ages-512-2-38-Swing-Frame-item-39949

FirePhoto23 said...

I think that even if just one child will benefit from a handicap swing, then it should be put up. We have them in a lot of our parks where I live (Long Island, NY)... It should be mandatory in my opinion.. I hope someone listens and gets the ball rolling!

The VW's said...

Hope your fight brings great success! Their response seems quite lame.....vandalism can happen with any equipment on a playground! So many other children would benefit from having a swing like that at the park!

Lindsay Marie said...

You really inspire me :) I wish I could help you get a handicapped swing for Jaxson and others like him, but I live on the other side of the continent and I don't have any children, however, I will still send good thoughts your way :)

Anonymous said...

Lacy - I agree with you but from following this blog I- I have read that you do not like Obama or democrats - why does this matter? Because only democrats would ever pay for your swing or even insurance for Jax - if repubicans had thier way Jax would not even have insurance - I admire your family but just wanted to bring up when you want something from government you have to vote and advocate for the government that will support you - not some party that dwells on abortion and guns.

Lacey said...

Anonymous, why why do people insist on not leaving their names?? It makes me so crazy that people are not afraid to leave a comment, but are afraid of leaving their names. I don't find this comment particularly nasty, but you are trying to say what I am, and let me tell you that you are way off. I don't like to get into politics, but I don't call myself a democrat or republican. There are things that both sides do that are stupid. I want the best person for the job, and in the last few years, that hasn't been anyone! I am definitely more liberal than conservative. So you are wrong my friend! I am pro-life, and sooo against guns. Do I like Obama care? Some things yes, some things no. I will vote for who is going to be the best president, and right now I don't really have faith in any prospective candidate. All I know is I've been paying taxes since I was 15, I think my son deserves a bit of that, instead of giving it to people that have never had a job or are sitting in prison to rot their lives away. I think a handicap swing is just something that should be in a park, its not spending more money than the other fancy equipment there.
Ok, that will probably be all you hear about politics from me. I cut a lot of stuff out of my blog because of ignorant comments.

Megan said...

I hope you get the swing for Jax. You're right he has a right to enjoy the park like anyone else. I love the picture of you and Jax on the slide he looks like he is having so much fun. :)

Paula71 said...

I read the blog but I never comment but this post hits me hard. ALL children (and adults alike)should be able to experience the joy that comes along with going to a park. You are doing the right thing by fighting for your child. Keep it up!! I agree that ADA may apply in this situation. The local news might be able to help spread the word.

Anonymous:

Delurk and stand behind the comments you made. It is NOT okay to judge her like that. You hide behind anonymous because you haven't the guts or gall to step out of the shadows and give a REAL name. If you aren't here to support and pray for this family then GO AWAY!!