OUR MISSION
To build a Miracle Park in the heart of historic Olde Riverside. This park will include a relocated and prominently displayed cenotaph to honour Riverside veterans of both World Wars. It will feature a new and fully accessible walking path and a pavilion for families to enjoy.
The highlight will be a fully accessible, inclusive and state-of-the-art children’s playground and a Miracle League Sports Field.
The Miracle League surface will make it possible for children with challenges to participate in Riverside Minor Baseball programs. It will be located next to RMBA’s existing baseball diamonds, which means children playing with the Miracle League will be integrated into the existing baseball community and be able to fully enjoy the camaraderie of their teammates.
The Miracle League program at Farrow Riverside Miracle Park will be modelled after the one in Amherstburg, which currently serves 150 participants with disabilities each week. As many as 150 volunteers are also involved.
The Amherstburg Miracle League has a waiting list, and organizers are eager to collaborate with RMBA to provide more programming for children and adults with challenges who are living in Windsor and Essex County.
OUR PARTNERS
RMBA is pleased to have partnered with the City of Windsor on this project, and in October 2017 we signed a multi-year lease agreement. RMBA will build the Miracle Field on the leased land, and the City of Windsor will develop the playground and pathway on the municipal side of the park.
The club is pleased to have a strong relationship with organizations like Family Respite Services, the John McGivney Centre, Community Living Windsor and the Amherstburg Miracle League.
The Riverside Minor Baseball Association also has many community-minded philanthropists and organizations that have agreed to sponsor and donate to the Miracle Park. In fact, as of June 2018, more than $750,000 as been pledged toward this $2.5 million project.
WHY OLDE RIVERSIDE?
The history of Riverside Minor Baseball dates back more than 60 years, when the former Riverside Fire Department first sponsored a PeeWee baseball league in St. Rose Park. Over the years, this park became a community hub.
It was anchored by the Cenotaph, and through the decades the community supported thousands of young baseball and hockey players. The Miracle Field has actually been built on the site of the former Riverside Arena, which was torn down in 2011.
Creating a Miracle Park will not just resurrect this area for the residents of Riverside. It will provide a safe, secure and inclusive place where all
children and adults in Windsor and Essex County to be active, regardless of their ability, their age or their circumstance.
HOW CAN WE MAKE THIS HAPPEN?
We can make this happen with your help. This project, estimated at more than $3 million, will be funded by a three-year capital campaign strategy, and the RMBA will work with the City of Windsor to upgrade the park and provide the amenities outlined here. The City of Windsor is also making upgrades to the municipal washrooms and change facilities at the city-owned pool to make them fully accessible.
RMBA will also apply to foundations that support projects like this and seek appropriate government grants. The goal was to have the shovel in the ground by Spring 2018, and that goal has been met.
A grand opening of the entire park will be held in the Spring of 2020
