Friends of Staunton State Park Key Ceremony, Oct 14 2016 at 11:00am

For Immediate Release

Friends of Staunton State Park
PO Box 695
Pine, CO 80470

Contact:
Sharon Trilk, Friends of Staunton State Park Board of Directors
This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
720-608-0285

Pine, Colo. - The Friends of Staunton State Park invite the public to attend the ceremonial turning over of the key to the first track chair for Staunton State Park’s Track Chair Program to improve accessibility at the park on October 14, 2016 at 11:00am at the Ranch Hand Group Picnic Area at Staunton State Park, 12102 S. Elk Creek Rd, Pine, CO 80470. Light refreshments will be served.

With the purchase and donation of this track chair by the Friends of Staunton State Park, Staunton State Park will become the first Colorado state park with an accessibility program. Once implemented, anyone wishing to come explore the outdoors who needs these chairs may reserve them free of charge by calling the park at 303-816-0912 to make the necessary arrangements.

About the Friends of Staunton State Park:
The Friends of Staunton State Park, established 2012, is a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization whose mission is to Work in partnership with others to preserve, promote and protect the wildlife, natural beauty and historic legacy of Staunton State Park for present and future generations.

In 2015, at the request and with the support of the family of Mark Madsen, the Friends of Staunton State Park started the Mark Madsen Memorial Fund in order to improve accessibility at the park. Mark Madsen became a quadriplegic due to a terrible car accident in 2001 after growing up and raising his family in the area that is now known as Staunton State Park. Thanks to a track chair and wonderful staff at Craig Hospital, Mark was able to enjoy the outdoors at Staunton before passing away in his cabin near Lions Head, the iconic rock formation of Staunton State Park, on August 10, 2015.

On August 13, 2016, the Friends of Staunton State Park held the inaugural Mark Madsen Accessibility Celebration to purchase a $15,000 track chair for the park, support projects to improve trail conditions where they would make wheelchair operation difficult, and begin other efforts to increase accessibility for the disabled. The event raised over $42,000 allowing for the purchase of one, and eventually two, track chairs. You can watch the whole presentation here:

To help support the Mark Madsen Memorial Fund and continue to increase accessibility at Staunton, anyone may donate here: www.friendsofstaunton.org/event-mark-madsen-accessibility-day

For more information about the Friends of Staunton State Park, visit:
 www.friendsofstauntonstatepark.org/

About Staunton State Park:
Colorado's newest state park opened to the public on May 18, 2013. The park is located approximately 40 miles southwest of downtown Denver, north of US Highway 285 and about six miles west of Conifer. The Park sits divided between Park and Jefferson counties, in Pine, Colorado.

The first 1,720-acre parcel of land was donated to then Colorado State Parks in 1986 by Frances Hornbrook Staunton. Subsequent parcels of land were added over the years to make up the now 3,828 acre park. Read more about the story of Staunton State Park at the history page here: cpw.state.co.us/placestogo/parks/Staunton/Pages/History.aspx .
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For Immediate Release
Jennifer Churchill
CPW NE Region PIO
303-291-7234



Friends of Staunton provide first track chair to CPW

DENVER – On Oct. 14, the Friends of Staunton will hand over the keys to the Parks’ first ever track chair, which will provide access to all disabled individuals wishing to partake in Staunton State Park’s hiking trails.

“We are so proud of our Friends group and our inspiration, Mark Madsen and family, for helping us get to this point,” said Zach Taylor, park manager for Staunton. “Being able to offer the therapeutic benefits of the outdoors to all of our visitors is truly rewarding. We have assisted Craig Hospital in getting a number of people out to the park already and this chair will officially be the Parks to share.”

WHAT: Dedication of the first track chair for Staunton State Park

WHEN: Friday, Oct. 14, 11 a.m.

WHERE: Staunton State Park, 12102 S. Elk Creek Rd., Pine

HOW: Visitors to the Park are welcome to attend the event ($7/daily pass or $70 annual). After a presentation, we will welcome several disabled visitors to discuss their experience with the track chair and the program, and the Park will offer demonstrations.

For more information on the Mark Madsen Accessibility program or to donate, visit: www.stauntonpark.com/event-mark-madsen-accessibility-day

If you are interested in learning more about the track chair, see:
www.takeactionmobility.com/

​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​From high grassy meadows at 8,100 feet to soaring granite cliffs over 10,000 feet, Staunton State Park's varied geology, soils, water features, and climate support rare and unexpected plant communities and a rich diversity of wildlife and provide a myriad of outdoor recreation opportunities.

Thanks to the Friends of Staunton State Park in helping make the Park accessible to all!

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CPW is an enterprise agency, relying primarily on license sales, state parks fees and registration fees to support its operations, including: 42 state parks and more than 350 wildlife areas covering approximately 900,000 acres, management of fishing and hunting, wildlife watching, camping, motorized and non-motorized trails, boating and outdoor education. CPW's work contributes approximately $6 billion in total economic impact annually throughout Colorado.

Today, the Friends of Staunton State Park formally handed over the keys to the brand new Action Track Chair to Staunton State Park, marking the beginning of the very first accessibility program at any Colorado state park. You can watch the live video done by Colorado Parks and Wildlife here: www.facebook.com/ColoradoParksandWildlif...5460582/?pnref=story

A heartfelt thank you again to everyone who made this impossible dream possible - those who so generously donated, the Staunton Park volunteers and staff, and the friends and family of Mark Madsen. Thanks to all of you, we are looking forward to a brighter tomorrow!





Friends of Staunton President Wayne Parkinson and Staunton State Park Manager Zach Taylor
To the left is the sling transfer lift, which will allow the safe transfer of a disabled person from their wheelchair to the track chair.


Marie Hensick, sister of the late Mark Madsen


Sparky, Mark's service dog, delivering" the key




Shake on it!

Some media coverage of our event!

Colorado Outdoors Magazine: Staunton Debuts First Colorado State Park All-Terrain Wheelchair
Posted on October 17, 2016 by Jerry L. Neal

Staunton State Park on Friday became the first Colorado state park with an all-terrain wheelchair for on-site use. The chair, which operates on tank-like wheels and can go off-road on dirt trails and up inclines, will be available to park visitors with all levels of disabilities.

“Our hope is to push this [program] out to other parks here in Colorado,” said Wayne Parkinson, director of Friends of Staunton, the nonprofit that donated the wheelchair. The chair is dedicated to Mark Madsen, who was quadriplegic and also loved exploring Staunton.

During the chair’s debut on Friday, Madsen’s former service dog Sparky presented a symbolic key – opening the park’s access to disabled individuals – to Staunton Park Manager Zach Taylor.

Within the next “couple weeks,” some (though not all) of Staunton’s trails will be open to all levels of disabled visitors, according to Taylor. The park is finalizing rules and procedures for use of the chair in order to ensure safety. Taylor is pushing to make the park as accessible as possible to as many people as possible. “This is just the start of it,” he promised.

FOX31 KDVR: Staunton State Park gets all-terrain wheelchair for visitors with disabilities
Posted 11:56 am, October 18, 2016, by Anica Padilla, Updated at 12:10pm, October 18, 2016

Staunton State Park is the first Colorado state park with an all-terrain wheelchair for on-site use, according to Colorado Parks and Wildlife. Staunton is in Pine, which is about six miles west of Conifer.

A nonprofit group called Friends of Staunton State Park donated the Action Track Chair.

The license plate is “MARK 1” in memory of Mark Madsen, who was quadriplegic and loved exploring Staunton. After he passed away, his family asked people to make donations to the group in his honor in lieu of sending flowers.

The group already has plans to buy a MARK 2 and make the park accessible to more people.

And a stupendous thank you to Cliff Bowron of Branches Cabinetry for his 2-page article on Staunton State Park in the issue of Colorado Serenity Magazine that just came out yesterday! Pick up your copy at local shops (Aspen Perk Cafe, the Conifer Chamber, Mountain Books, etc) before they're gone!

We feel so blessed to have such a generous and supportive community who love our park and want everyone to be able to come and enjoy the outdoors! Thank you all!
Our Key Ceremony, starring Sparky.

Two more stories covering our Action Trackchair and Staunton's new accessibility!
9News: Staunton State Park becomes first in the state to have all-terrain wheelchair
Erica Tinsley, KUSA
October 18, 2016

PINE, COLO. - Staunton State Park is making it easier for people with disabilities to enjoy Colorado's outdoors.

It's now the first park in the state to have an all-terrain wheelchair that operates on tank-like wheels, and can go off-road on dirt trails, and up inclines.

The nonprofit, Friends of Staunton State Park, donated the wheelchair in memory of Mark Madsen.

Video story with interviews of park staff and volunteers, and more by FOX31 KDVR:
Tracked wheel chair a first for Colorado parks
by Dan Daru
October 21, 2016

JEFFERSON COUNTY, Colo. -- Colorado resident Mark Madsen loved the outdoors. Hiking, fishing...he even had a cabin by Lion's Head Peak.

Mark Madsen passed away in August 2015 in the mountain cabin that he loved. It was shortly after that, his family had an idea, "Why don't we do something in regards to Staunton State Park. Mark loved it. It was a very favorite place of his for many, many years," said Madsen's sister, Marie Hensick.

The family, through donations and fund raising, bought and donated a brand new tracked wheel chair for Staunton Park in Jefferson County.