At the outset of the Staunton Track Chair Program, one of the long-term goals of Friends of Staunton State Park and the park staff was to grow the program to include other Colorado state parks. Since purchasing the 4th and 5th chairs, much effort has gone into talking and working with various potential partners to begin their own programs and how Staunton could help.
Finally, 4+ years after the initial Mark Madsen Accessibility Celebration, that day has arrived with the loan of one of Staunton's Action Track Chairs to Barr Lake State Park. I am over the moon at seeing accessibility being improved elsewhere in Colorado and hope this is but the first in a series of expansions of this amazing program. A huge congratulations and thank you to everyone who never gave up on what at times seemed an insurmountable task.
ADAMS COUNTY, Colo. — Wheelchairs on the trails that more closely resemble tanks are not that unusual of a sight at Staunton State Park, which has had a track chair program for years.
Now, this effort to make Colorado’s trails more inclusive for people with disabilities has reached the Eastern Plains.
Barr Lake State Park in Brighton was able to loan one of the track chairs from Staunton State Park earlier this month, and the Holder family got to experience some of the park’s trails this past weekend.
"Now, more than ever, the illusions of division threaten our very existence. We all know the truth: more connects us than separates us. But in times of crisis the wise build bridges, while the foolish build barriers. We must find a way to look after one another as if we were one single tribe.” -King T'Challa, Black Panther
The truth is incontrovertible. Malice may attack it. ignorance may deride it, but in the end, there it is. ~Winston Churchill
