Miracle League Playground On Its Way to Being Handicapped-Friendly

For the wheelchair-bound, the Mauldin Miracle League at Sunset Park in Mauldin is already a pretty special place.

The rubber surface on the baseball has . Now, the playground that stands a few hundred feet away is about to get the same treatment.

At a press conference today in front of the sun-drenched playground, , the founder of the Mauldin Miracle League, was presented with a check from Geico for $10,000. That marks a strong first step toward raising the necessary $200,000 needed to fund a renovation that will replace the equipment and convert the sandy surface to one similar to that of the nearby baseball diamond. See the attached artist’s rendering of what the playground will look like.

Maggie Painter, 14 of Greenville, was on-hand celebrate the occasion. The plan gets her approval.

“I love it. It gives kids with disabilities more opportunities to get out and about,” she said. “You just want to have a bit of fun sometimes.”

The smile on Maggie’s face was all Raines needed to see to be convinced the effort was worthwhile.

“I’ve done a lot of things that I get paid for, but working with the Miracle League is the most rewarding thing I do.”

Grant Sims of Geico was happy to help.

“We’re very much about community service and we already help out with the Miracle League, so it was just a matter of getting organized,” Sims said.

The City of Mauldin will provide much of the labor for the renovations to keep costs to a minimum. The new structure will be custom-designed by Landscape Structures Inc. in Delano, Minn.

If you are interested in making a donation contact Dennis Raines at 864.505.5417 or doraines@bellsouth.net.