Coyotes Staff Volunteers with KABOOM! for Playground Build at ACCEL

It's amazing what the power of people can accomplish in just one day.

Now, students who were most in need of a safe and inclusive place to play will realize those benefits for years to come.

Arizona Coyotes staff, along with some of the players’ spouses, volunteered at ACCEL’s East Campus in Tempe, Ariz. last Thursday, working with KABOOM! to construct a brand new, inclusive playground that is suitable for students both with and without disabilities.

Approximately 50 Coyotes employees worked alongside 100 volunteers from Discover – who was the funding sponsor for the event – to build an outdoor play space that includes a jungle gym, a swing set that also includes adaptive swings for students who are unable to sit up in a regular swing, and even a “Sway station” that is ADA accessible to ensure those in a wheelchair can also enjoy the equipment.

Volunteers mixed and poured concrete, assembled the playground equipment, hauled and distributed woodchips, and even did various beautification activities on the k-12 campus, which serves 80 students, all of whom have special needs.

“We are so proud to volunteer with KABOOM! to help construct this new, more inclusive playground on ACCEL’s East Campus,” Coyotes President and CEO Xavier A. Gutierrez said. “ACCEL’s work with both children and adults strikes at the core of who we are as an organization, and it means so much to be part of such an important project within the community.”

ACCEL is an organization serves 34 school districts while providing exceptional educational, behavioral, therapeutic, and vocational programs to individuals with special needs and developmental disabilities. Those who are served range from 18 months old into adulthood, and it is the only private special education school in Arizona nationally accredited by the National Commission for the Accreditation of Special Education Services, according to its web site.

One of the school’s other campuses was the recipient of a KABOOM! build last year, and this time, it was time for its East Campus to receive a facelift. ACCEL is also a previous grantee recipient from the Arizona Coyotes Foundation, and the Coyotes make a point to volunteer with the organization as much as possible.

“They always have needs where we can bring out large groups of people, and our hands always seem to get dirty when we come here,” said Stella O’Rourke, the Coyotes’ Director of Philanthropy and Special Events. “We build things and we make the spaces more adaptable for children who have physical and intellectual disabilities just to make their space feel more regular and accessible for all children.”

Chris Horton, the school’s principal who has worked for ACCEL for 31 years, said the east campus has a lower student-to-staff ratio to ensure each child receives the attention and assistance they deserve, but cannot receive through traditional schooling.

The staff also has special training in behavior intervention to allow them to work with students that display more significant behavioral issues, in addition to the special needs children that are supported at the school.

Horton said the previous playground had no climbing structure, no adaptive swings for students that lack the motor control to sit up in a regular swing, and no way for those confined to a wheelchair to experience any of the playground.

Now, the school’s play yard has all three elements.

“They’re so excited,” Horton said. “The smiles on their faces when they can get into the swings and be safe in there and feel secure; they’re not worried about falling over, they’re so excited about that.”

KABOOM! works throughout the country to construct play spaces that allow access for all children, and the process for a single build takes roughly three months to complete, according to project manager Jeffery Hardy.

He said the nonprofit doesn’t just show up and “build a playground that we think should be there,” instead consulting with the children and their parents to ensure the final product is an inclusive, accessible space that’s appropriate for its surroundings.

Once they identified their funding partner (Discover) and community partner (ACCEL), the planning – and ultimately the construction – commenced.

“We just find people that understand our mission to make sure kids have happy and healthy play spaces so they can lead happy and healthy lives as adults,” Hardy said. “This work is very important.”

Discover has funded 47 playgrounds, including five in the Phoenix area, and brought 100 volunteers to the final build on Thursday. Mandi Rupple, Lead Community Affairs Specialist, said the company’s values include both doing the right thing -- and volunteering -- and the company is always looking for ways to fund initiatives that improve both youth and education.

“Each year we look for a location in need, and we then fund the sponsorship,” Rupple said. “Those kids being able to get out there, express that energy, express themselves, and make friends, that helps build them into their future lives.”

Also present among the scores of volunteers last week was Claire Crouse, wife of Coyotes forward Lawson Crouse. The build was her second event of the week after volunteering with Ronald McDonald House in the days prior, and she said she cherishes the time giving back to the community.

Crouse spent the day helping beautify the grounds and add some extra elements to ACCEL’s east campus, including a painted maze on the sidewalk that will let students use their imaginations outside of the classroom, as well as in it.

“The community does so much for us and the Coyotes, that it’s really important that we do as much as we possibly can for the community, as well,” she said. “It means so much to us to give back.”

One of the Arizona Coyotes Foundation’s main pillars of service is education, making Thursday’s event that much more meaningful for the organization.

“The Arizona Coyotes and the Arizona Coyotes Foundation believe in leveraging the power of sports to truly have an impact on the lives of others, and it’s amazing to see our staff show out in full force to support the effort taking place today,” Gutierrez said. “The impact of this playground -- and this project -- will be felt for years to come, and we are beyond proud to have a hand in its creation.”

Horton agreed, and said the school would never have been able to dream such a project would be completed if not for the helping hand – and hearts – of all who attended on Thursday.

“This is absolutely incredible because we wouldn’t be able to do it. There’s no way we could do this on our own,” she said.  “We just don’t have the manpower to do it. It would have been impossible, but today it happened.”