0522HarfordSpring22 - Flipbook - Page 40
Adam Fletcher of Bel Air, watches his son, Jonathan, 14, as he attempts pull-ups at Lyn Stacie Getz Creative Playground.
Lyn Stacie Getz Creative Playground
301-333 W Ring Factory Road, Bel Air
Before the 2001 groundbreaking, organizers
asked youngsters to draw pictures of features
they’d like to see in their playground. One
example: a miniature fire truck. Another —
Milo, the 25-foot tall orange giraffe with red
spots who “greets” visitors.
Though it resembles Annie’s Playground,
the “giraffe park” has more equipment that
moves — a seesaw, swings designed to hold a
parent and child, a swaying net bridge and a
round green structure that updates the merrygo-round. Even Milo’s head bobs.
Perhaps that potential for repetitive
movement is why this playground is a favorite
for parents of children with autism. Plus, it has
at least one important safety feature.
“This is one of the few places I can actually
take my kids and let them be around other
people,” said Rachel Heise, 32, of Abingdon.
Her daughter, Savannah Gagliano, 13, is on
the autism spectrum and her 4-year-old son,
Alexander Heise, absorbs information more
40 | SPRING 2022 | harfordmagazine.com
slowly than his peers.
“I have to know where my kids are every
second,” Heise said. “This park makes that
easy to do because there’s only one exit.”
Savannah Gagliano, 13, of Abingdon, enjoys
an afternoon at Lyn Stacie Getz Creative
Playground. Her mother, Rachel Heise, says
Gagliano, who has autism, loves to feel the
air on her face as she swings.