Leo’s Landing in Irmo Chapin

Leo’s Landing: Where Play Knows No Bounds

By: Lori M. Shaffer, Irmo Chapin Recreation Commission

If childhood had a bill of rights, among them would be “the right to play” and “the right to play with your family and friends.” Saluda Shoals Park has been making that a greater reality for everyone with the opening of Leo’s Landing in August of 2019. This twoacre universally inclusive playground provides a sensory-rich, developmentally appropriate, fun and safe playground where children and adults of all abilities can play together. Realizing Leo’s Landing wasn’t quick and it wasn’t easy. It took three years, many meetings, a dedicated team of community volunteers and park staff, much research and brainstorming, and $1.7 million to build. Since opening in August 2019, more than 30,000 have played there, taking advantage of a truly inclusive play space where a child in a power chair can swing with his brother; where an autistic child can engage in the natural world without becoming overwhelmed; and where a mother in a wheelchair can play music in a nature sound garden with her child in a barrier-free environment. Leo’s Landing was inspired by Leo Bugenske, a six-year old born with Spinal Muscular Atrophy, a terminal neuromuscular disease that is the top genetic killer of young children. It occurs in nearly one out of every 6,000 births and requires 24-hour skilled care. In 2015, the Irmo Chapin Recreation Commission (ICRC) and the Saluda Shoals Foundation received an email from Leo’s mother, Meredith. She requested a platform swing so Leo, and other children like him who are confined to a mobility device, could experience swinging. This email was the catalyst to develop an interactive and accessible playground for children and adults of all abilities. ICRC and the Saluda Shoals Foundation Board of Directors recognized this unique playground would address a need in the Midlands community. A team was formed comprised of staff, Leo’s family, and community volunteers to research, plan, and raise private funds for the inclusive playground. In 2016, the team partnered with Shane’s Inspiration, a non-