The History of Hope Park

My name is Jenni Jensen.  I am married with four children, and we have lived in The Trails of West Frisco for three and a half years.  We have enjoyed all that Frisco has to offer.  My youngest daughter, who is four and a half years old, has Down syndrome.  Since we have a tennis court right behind our house, all of our children take tennis lessons, except for Nora.  She has some physical delays that cause her to not be able to keep up with the other kids.  One day I asked the tennis coach when he was going to do a tennis camp for children with special needs, so Nora could be included.  He responded, “I’ve never thought about it, but that is a great idea!”

A few months later my friend, Karen, and I offered “Special Friends Tennis Camp”, a free camp for children ages 4-6 years old.  We had 12 children show up, and by the last day of camp they all were able to hit the ball over the net!  It was a success!

During the last class, I was speaking to a friend and mentioned that someone should build a park that would include children with special needs.  He immediately said, “Why don’t you build it here in The Trails?”  I wondered.  Me?  Build a park?  Here?  Could it really happen?  A park that includes children with special needs in every way?

Several months later, I was driving home from the store and noticed a large empty lot in The Trails that I had never really noticed before.  My heart skipped a beat. I parked the car and took a walk through the empty lot.  Could this be the place where we could build the park?  I felt the urge to pray, which is not an urge that I am used to!  I asked God to give me a sign to let me know if we should try to build this park. I left and went home with excitement in my heart.

Two days later, Nora fell while climbing out of her crib and broke her leg…..again.  She had a full leg cast and was in a wheelchair for months.

When we would visit the park, Nora could not get onto the equipment in her wheelchair.  Her cast would not fit in a baby swing, and she was too weak to support herself in a regular swing seat.  I also found that a wheelchair does not move well at all on sand or wood chips.  Our outings to parks were NOT FUN!  She wanted to play with her sister and brothers, and all the jostling around would scare her.  She would end up in tears.  It took this experience to realize that there really isn’t a park in Frisco that has all of the accommodations for a child with special needs.

Nora Jensen

I felt in my heart that this was the answer to my prayer.  I had asked God if we should build a park suitable to accommodate children with special needs, and God showed me not only what it’s like for a child in a wheelchair but what’s it like to be a parent trying to give that child the same enjoyment that is so readily available to other children.

Once the seed was planted, it immediately began to bloom.  I knew I wanted it to be called Hope Park.  I knew that I wanted the park not only to be fully wheelchair accessible but also to have sensory areas dedicated to children with sensory processing disorders like Autism.

And that is how Hope Park began.

Boundless in it’s design, this will be like no other park in Frisco.   This park will be designed, paid for, and built by us — the community of Frisco.   It will include play areas for children with special needs.  It will have new and exciting play equipment not yet seen in any Frisco parks.  It will go beyond monkey bars, slides and simulated climbing rocks.  It will truly be an inclusive play adventure!