Terry Hagen - Recreation Programmer, City of Rock Hill

As you start to visit the Miracle Park and have questions you will most likely meet Terry.  She is coordinating the Miracle League and other sports out at the park for the City of Rock Hill's Parks, Recreation, and Tourism department.  Read her story below to learn more about this wonderful woman and how it's always been her dream to allow all people the opportunity to play together even since she was a little girl! 

Terry Hagen - Recreation Programmer

When I was little, my family moved to SC from New York.   My parents sent me to a church day camp one summer and there was a staff member who brought her daughter Denise to work with her.  Denise was much older than the campers but played with us and was very childlike. One day it was raining and for some reason we had our shoes off, and Denise needed help buckling her sandals.  When I realized that she didn’t know how to buckle her shoes, I spent the whole afternoon teaching her to buckle her own sandals.  She was SO happy when she finally did it on her own.  

When I got home, I asked my parents about her, they explained what Down Syndrome was and, in that conversation, I learned that when I was a young child, my father was a Special Education teacher at the inner-city schools.   I remember him being a teacher but didn’t know too much about his class because I was so young.   When we moved to South Carolina, he gave up teaching, so it never came up until I met Denise.  

After that summer, I began elementary school and our class had to walk past the Special Education class to get to the playground.  This was the very first day of school I asked the teacher why they couldn’t play too.   The response was something along the lines of “that’s the Special Ed class.”   It made me sad to see those children watch us go by and not be able to play too.   Then the next year, some of the classrooms moved and the Special Ed class was now in a room that had a window that looked out to the playground.  I hated seeing them watch us and not be able to join us.  I always remembered that and never understood why they couldn’t join us. 

At some point, the teachers must’ve been tired of my questions and they allowed me to “volunteer” in that class during recess one day a week.  That led to volunteering with Special Olympics as a teenager and I never stopped.

Flash forward several years and I had to get a “summer job” so I began working in a group home for adults with developmental disabilities.  I was 19 years old, and I worked 2-10pm Monday through Friday.   I took those women EVERYWHERE!    I absolutely fell in love and working with people with disabilities became my life.   Flash forward 34 years and I am still working with some of the same people I worked with at 19.  

I’ve worked in group homes, day programs, case management and recreation.  In each job, my motto has always been “Why can’t they do it too?”   Now, I get to make some of those why’s a reality.

Aug 14 update

Construction is still progressing!  But we sure would love the rain to go away to complete it sooner!  Stay tuned!  Mark your calendar for Sept 18, 4-7pm for the Grand Opening! 

Thanks to Bob Russell for our overhead shots! 

July 23 update

 

The park is coming along very nicely and it's so great to see it greening up!  Stay tuned for more information on when you can come and play! 

July 1 update

 

Phase One is well on it's way!  In the past two weeks we have seen the dugout roofs installed, more playground pieces in stalled, the donor area starting to form, insides of buildings continuing, and behind the scenes signs, sculptures, design happening.

BUT, that's not all!!! 

June Progress

 Last Tuesday as the Panthers made their Major Donation announcement Bob Russell captured the overall view of the park's progress!  Haven't donated?  There are two weeks left to commit and be etched into the park in the donor area.

Grand Opening - August 21, 5-9pm

$700,000 from the Panthers!

Today, as we were expecting to celebrate a $200,000 grant from the Carolina Panthers Charities we were surprised with an additional $500,000 from the Nicole and David Tepper Foundation!  Not only will these funds help us to build a multi-purpose field, but it will also include the Teppers and Panthers being a partner with us and helping us to find great success in the Miracle Park programming!  The Grand Opening date, August 21, was also set from 5-9pm.  

Go Panthers!!!  Welcome to Rock Hill!

 We are happy to add these two groups to our major donors list!  Thank you to all our donors!  We have now raised about $5.5 million of the $6.5 million needed for Phase 1 and a portion of Phase 2 (multi-purpose field)!

Kindness Kiosk for Miracle Park!

The Gifted and Talented class at Northside Elementary School of the Arts have been working in their architecture and design unit with their teacher, Mrs. Waltmire. The kids were tasked with designing and constructing a "kindness kiosk" along with imagining what product they would sell to raise money for a charity.  

Here is a glimpse into Lyla Seibert's imagination and kindness for Miracle Park!  What a great presenter!  Keep it up Lyla, your imagination and presentation skills are going to take you on an exciting path in life! 

Future Athlete: Becky

Becky is 40 years old and has Lawrence moon syndrome.  She has a guide dog named, Max. 

She is blind, so her guide dog helps her get out in the community, she could not do the things she does now with his assistance. She LOVES Special Olympics, she participates in bowling, bocce, softball throw, and the 100 meter walk.  She is now swimming at the YMCA in a program where she is averaging 36 laps twice a week.  She includes Max in everything and he watches her very closely.

She is a go getter and extremely excited about Miracle Park and can’t wait until it opens up!  She wants to be one of the first people to get to explore and use the equipment there.  She is helping gather and sort lids to help build recycled benches at the park!  Please turn yours in by June 15 if you have some.  

She is always ready to meet new friends and is a pleasure to talk with and impresses people with her kindness and how knowledgeable she is!

May 20 Update!

Phase One is underway and on track to open the later part of the summer this year, but we still need your financial support...next week is Miracle Park Give Day on May 25, stay tuned for details! Thanks to Bob Russell for our overhead pictures of the park! 

You can click here to learn about donating to the Miracle Park project! 

Detail is key in our new Miracle Park and it will be defined by Universal Design Certification ! 

Playground installation won't be complete until we have the Sona Arch installed! 

Above you will eventually find picnic tables, shade, the sensory area, concessions, restrooms and more!

The fences are up on Miracle Field #1 and Winthrop Field which will be a traditional field. 

Extra wide sidewalks inside the park area will help with ease of wheelchairs and curb-less areas will aide in the ease of entering the fields and other areas. 

 

May is Mental Health Awareness Month

We are lucky to have NAMI Piedmont Tri-county local helping many that suffer from a mental illness.  

Their mission:

Providing hope to those who deserve it most

At NAMI Piedmont Tri-County, we aim to rebuild hope where it’s been damaged or lost. We work with those in need, those who are underprivileged, and those who are underserved to rebuild hope and recovery for those who suffer from mental illness. Our focus lies on community efforts for all those who are affected by mental illness through support, community awareness and education.  One in four people are affected by mental illness in some way, we are on a mission to help stamp out stigma and over time stamp out mental illness!

Visit their website for more information: Mental Illness - NAMI | Piedmont Tri-County (namipiedmont.org)

A mental illness is a medical condition that disrupts a person’s thinking, feeling, mood, ability to relate to others and daily functioning. Just as diabetes is a disorder of the pancreas, mental illnesses are medical conditions that often result in a diminished capacity for coping with the ordinary demands of life.

Serious mental illnesses include major depression, schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD), panic disorder, posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and borderline personality disorder. The good news about mental illness is that recovery is possible.

Mental illnesses can affect persons of any age, race, religion or income. Mental illnesses are not the result of personal weakness, lack of character or poor upbringing. Mental illnesses are treatable. Most people diagnosed with a serious mental illness can experience relief from their symptoms by actively participating in an individual treatment plan.

Find Out More About A Specific Mental Illness:

• Anxiety Disorders
• Autism Spectrum Disorders
• ADHD
• Bipolar Disorder
• Borderline Personality Disorder
• Depression
• Dissociative Disorders
• Dual Diagnosis: Substance Abuse and Mental Illness
• Eating Disorders
• Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder (OCD)
• Posttraumatic Stress Disorder
• Schizoaffective Disorder
• Schizophrenia
• Related Conditions

Kids giving their hearts to the park!

Lilli Jane had so much fun making her grandmothers lanyards for their face masks that she decided she wanted to do more.  Following in the footsteps of Emma Sessions and Alana Fincher, she enlisted the help of her sister and started making lanyards to put on social media to sell.  She said, "I don't need the money, so I want to give it to the Miracle Park."  Since the park still needs over $1,000,000 for phase 1, this is a great thing!

After they had some "stock" their mom, Alice Davis, put them on Facebook, and after several weeks sold 73 lanyards!  They also sold some bracelets and even had one order for 16 bracelets!  In combination of some "extra" donated money from supporters they eventually raised $1700 for the park!

Kids doing good for the park has been contagious!  We love all fundraisers, but there is something special about kids pouring their hearts into a project that they already know is going to make such a big impact in our community! 

Please reach out and let us know how YOU can help us raise money!  EVERY $1 is spent well and put to great use!