Fundraising for the proposed expansion could double the size of the park, something that Nancy Rabb, Vice President of Wag-A-Bag and donor of the land on which the Play for All Abilities Park is built said is overdue.
"I come out here every week to count the cars and the children, and it's just such a pleasure. It is very over-utilized and overly loved and now with this expansion we will have so much more equipment for the children and more parking," said Rabb.
Former mayor of Round Rock Nyle Maxwell of the Maxwell Family of dealerships made a contribution of $60,000.
"This particular park is so important because it gives children of all abilities and disabilities a chance to enjoy a beautiful day like today," said Maxwell.
He went on to say that Round Rock stands out as a community because of the partnerships that are forged between philanthropic and civic organizations, donors, corporations, small and large businesses and the city of Round Rock. "When all that comes together, we can do wondrous things," he said.
Ruth Ryan, wife of Nolan Ryan made a contribution on behalf of the Nolan Ryan Foundation in the amount of $50,000 toward the park expansion.
"My son Reese brought me out here a couple of weeks ago, and I was just blown away," said Ryan.
The foundation will headquarter its offices in Round Rock in January, and the donation to the Play for All Abilities Park is its first major contribution to the community, according to Desa Swaim, executive director of the Nolan Ryan Foundation.
Representatives for Round Rock, Pflugerville, Georgetown and Austin area Chick-Fil-A restaurants were present to make a contribution of $25,000 toward the park expansion, and expressed their excitement in partnering with the other contributors as well as the city of Round Rock to help improve the park and the community.Dell Children's Medical Center, Seton and the Seton Healthcare Family's parent company Ascension Health, made a contribution in the amount of $25,000.
"We had so much energy at Seton Williamson about this project from our pediatric rehab staff," said Diane Plas, Seton network manager for Professional and Community Outreach. She said that many of their therapists worked on the design task force for the initial build of the park, because a park that allows children to play to their abilities means so much to patients and the therapists.'Big Boy' Hester of Hester Auto and Body also donated $23,000.
And as they did with the initial build of the park, CHASCO will donate construction services to the expansion project.
"We know that CHASCO is going to be a great partner for us, and CHASCO is going to match almost every dollar we put into the project in labor to make things happen for us," said Rick Atkins, Director of Parks and Recreation.
Morgan announced that total contributions for the Play for All Abilities Park expansion had reached $341,496 through fundraising efforts. In addition to fundraising dollars, the city of Round Rock also allocated up to $500,000 in the FY 2017 budget to go toward the project.
While there is no set timeline for completion of the project, Morgan said he hopes to see the project break ground soon.
