Over $50,000 raised for new accessibility improvements in Madison parks

MADISON, Wis. (WMTV) - A match fund offered to the Madison Parks Foundation, coupled with public donations, helped raise over $50,000 to make area parks more accessible and inclusive.

Grant and Sarah Frautschi offered to match donations received by Madison Parks Foundation during their annual Picnic in the Park event, on May 21.

Their offer inspired many others to donate, which led to a total of $53,306 in two weeks, according to Madison Parks Foundation.

“It’s incredible to see how the philanthropy of Grant and Sarah Frautschi inspired so many others to support our important work of inclusion in our parks,” Stephanie Franklin, Executive Director of Madison Parks Foundation.

These improvements will include programs like KNOW (Kids Need Opportunities at Warner) as well as other youth activities by providing transportation which will allow those who attend these programs the chance to be able to get to all of the parks they can, enabling them to see more of Madison. Another use would be to add inclusive programming for people of different ability levels for different activities to learn at their own pace, the Madison Parks Foundation stated.

Funds will also go toward wheelchair accessibility to various parks and other public areas, culturally diverse programming, signs including braille and rope guides to various trails to help people with low vision or blindness.

Supporting accessibility and inclusive programming can be done with a donation to the Madison Parks Foundation’s Inclusion Fund online.