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The story behind Glenwood Springs, Colorado’s winning cover photo

Community can mean many things. Of course, it can be characterized by a physical location — but when we consider the broader meaning of community, there are many more qualities that come to mind. Several of these traits — such as support, connection, relationships, opportunities and belonging — are facilitated through local parks and recreation.

This July, in recognition of the Park and Recreation Month theme, “Where Community Grows,” we celebrate and uplift all the ways parks and recreation builds strong, vibrant and resilient communities in which no one is excluded and where everyone has the opportunity to thrive; communities in which participation is not dependent on someone’s real or perceived limitations; communities that build joy, resilience, compassion and empathy.

And celebrate we will, beginning with the story of our annual Park and Recreation Cover Contest winner, City of Glenwood Springs (Colorado) Parks and Recreation. The winning photo, featured on this month’s cover, pictures Isaac Alonso — and his infectious smile — who has been participating in Glenwood Springs’ therapeutic recreation program and developing his love for climbing while building his confidence and strength.

A Welcome Addition

Nestled in the Roaring Fork Valley, among the picturesque mountains of Western Colorado, the city of Glenwood Springs is home to a one-of-a-kind therapeutic recreation program that is making a big impact on the lives of its community members.

The program is designed to provide individuals with disabilities opportunities to participate in recreational activities, such as adaptive climbing, therapeutic gardening, fitness classes, art classes, swim lessons, whitewater rafting, playing in the park and more.

At the center of the program is Helaine “Laine” Fabijanic, a Certified Therapeutic Recreation Specialist since 1998 who works in a variety of settings — such as the clinical field, outdoor adventure and community recreation. Although she has called Glenwood Springs home since 1999, she joined City of Glenwood Springs Parks and Recreation in January 2023 as the city’s first community and therapeutic recreation supervisor to lead the therapeutic recreation program, which launched only a few months earlier in 2022.

“My purpose and passion are to help provide therapeutic recreation for our community here, giving people an opportunity to recreate who normally don’t get that opportunity and maybe aren’t even seen or programmed for,” says Fabijanic. “So that’s my job — to build those relationships [and] build the trust with our community so we can meet all the needs of our community members.”

Building those relationships and trust is exactly what she’s doing. Since city leaders approved the first-of-its-kind position at City of Glenwood Springs Parks and Recreation, Fabijanic has been cultivating an extremely special community around the therapeutic recreation program.

“Laine and her team listened to the unique needs of people with disabilities across a wide area around our mountain town,” says Joe Van Wyk, marketing coordinator for City of Glenwood Springs Parks and Recreation, who took this month’s cover photo. “People were desperate for activities that challenged and inspired their loved ones, while connecting families to others with similar gifts.”

Recognizing the importance of making these types of opportunities available and accessible, the city provided the necessary resources for more inclusive programming. Now there are growing opportunities for every member of the Glenwood Springs community to benefit from the power of parks and recreation.

Creating Community for All

Fabijanic’s approach to therapeutic recreation at Glenwood Springs Parks and Recreation is the definition of inclusive. While the department has been offering programs and activities for the community since 1971, the addition of the therapeutic recreation program ensures everyone can participate. And while some therapeutic or adaptive recreation programs may have separate programs within a department’s overall suite of offerings, City of Glenwood Springs is building a program that provides inclusive options and modifications for the programs that already exist.

“So, if you have a child who wants to play soccer, we’re going to help the child play soccer in our Little Demon Soccer Program with an adaptive buddy, so parents can enjoy sitting on the sideline and don’t have to be on the field with them,” says Fabijanic.

Fabijanic’s expertise also is helping to ensure staff leading other programs have the support they need when it comes to making their programs inclusive.

“I’m the only person in the therapeutic recreation department, so to speak. There’s not a ‘department,’ it’s just me,” she says. “It helps me become the support person for our supervisors in all the other areas, and then I can help them program. Like, for our aquatics supervisor, we program together to help for adaptive swim classes, but he knows his world of aquatics. And so, I’m just supporting that program and welcoming in people with disabilities.”

One of the therapeutic recreation program’s many success stories is that of Isaac Alonso, a young boy who was born with disabilities and is finding joy through climbing.

According to Isaac’s mother, Juana Alonso, the program has helped him in countless ways. Not only has he become stronger physically in his feet, legs and arms, but also he appears happier and more motivated and is beside himself with excitement on the days he can go climbing.

“He tells all of us about what he does during climbing practices,” says Juana. “He talks much more because he wants to tell us all about what he has done. He tells us that he ‘climbs very high’ and always seems very happy and proud.”

Juana shares that if it weren’t for this program, she believes Isaac may not have had the opportunity to show everything he is capable of doing, enforcing the importance of making these types of opportunities available to everyone.

Reaching for the Top

Therapeutic recreation allows people to have fun and to socialize while practicing the skills that they’re learning in physical therapy, speech therapy or occupational therapy. It is an opportunity to transfer the knowledge someone learns in other therapeutic settings in a fun way through recreational activity, which also contributes to growth and quality of life. “It adds this level of community that is really sacred and it kind of evens the playing field,” says Fabijanic.

This is all a result of the intention with which Fabijanic runs the program.

Therapeutic recreation has a system called APIE — Assess, Plan, Implement, Evaluate. Specifically in Glenwood Springs, Fabijanic works with the families or the support people who are bringing in individuals with disabilities to assess what types of programs may be best for them. So, the first step is always about connecting.

“It’s a connection point with the families, the support people, the schools and others, when we have to assess and build rapport to create that trust,” she says. “Then we make a plan based on the goals of the family. So, for instance, with Isaac, his family’s goals were to have fun. He wants to have fun. He wants to build his confidence and build his strength. And so those are very simple goals that we work on every week, and we always are adjusting.”

The plan was implemented on the very first day of climbing class, and Fabijanic, along with Isaac’s family, evaluates and reassesses all the time. They are constantly making sure Isaac’s harness feels comfortable, that everything he is doing is confidence-building, and that they are working toward his goals of social fun and getting stronger.

“We are continually advancing and evaluating as we go, based on the needs of the climber. In fact, with Isaac, he [was] using the chair harness, and in just a couple months, we were able to adapt to his needs and get a seat and chest harness combination,” says Fabijanic. “We actually got him standing up climbing, and that was profound. He also told me he never wanted to go back into the chair harness. So that’s a fine example of over just a couple months of how much progression we’ve made.”

According to Juana, that was a big challenge for Isaac. But, with the help of his instructors like Fabijanic and encouragement from his peers, he was able to overcome his fear and successfully climb the wall standing up. Since then, he has continued to improve and overcome new challenges in his climbing journey.

“In that moment, Isaac let go of limitations and just [went] for it. One minute he was sitting in his chair and the next he was flying like a bird. You can see how proud he is of himself in that beautiful smile of his. There was a community of supporters surrounding the climbing wall that day, cheering him on,” says Van Wyk.

When asked what his favorite thing about climbing is, Isaac shared that simply climbing on the rocks is what he loves the most. What’s more, when asked if overcoming challenges while climbing has helped with overcoming other obstacles in his life, he let out an emphatic, “Yeah!”

Not only is climbing helping his social and emotional well-being, but also the physical activity is helping him build the strength to use his wheelchair himself and become more independent in other areas of his life.

Seeing Isaac so happy and motivated has been extremely helpful for Juana. While Isaac’s confidence has grown, hers has too. As his mother, she knows Isaac is taken care of and kept safe while participating in the program, and she is so proud to see the progress he has made.

“His body has also become much stronger,” says Juana, “which also makes my job easier because he is becoming more independent and can support himself better, so I don’t have to exert myself physically as much.”

Independence is a key factor that Fabijanic focuses on in the program. For example, helping climbers put on their climbing shoes on their own instead of putting them on for them shows participants what they are capable of.

“I think it gives the families another vantage point…of knowing what’s possible...” says Fabijanic.

Building Relationships

Fabijanic’s 10-year-old daughter, Sakura, has been a classmate of Isaac’s for a while, so Fabijanic has seen him throughout the years in school settings, but she never knew him in the way she does since he joined the climbing program. They have become very close, and Isaac never fails to say, “Hiii Laineee,” in a sweet, excited voice each time they connect.

Sakura and Isaac also have become closer friends, racing up the climbing wall weekly. Fabijanic is so proud that her daughter gets to go back to her classmates and say, “Isaac rock climbs standing up. Like, you guys have no idea what Isaac can do — but I do, because I see him do it.”

“For him to have a peer that is sharing with his classmates about all the things he can do for himself, that is so fulfilling for me, knowing that’s happening,” says Fabijanic. “Knowing how capable he is instead of seeing what he struggles with.”

Isaac’s brother, Abraham Alonso, also was born with a disability and has started to join Isaac on the climbing wall, truly making it a family affair. Juana and her husband, Zacarias Alonso, are very involved and regularly bring both boys to various types of recreational activities — although climbing is clearly their favorite.

Family involvement has been an important piece of the program for Fabijanic, as well as community engagement and awareness, as the program is still so new. One way the department is making this happen is by providing outreach in both English and Spanish, ensuring Glenwood Springs’ large Spanish-speaking population is aware of the offerings available. Another way they are bringing in the community is in the form of a Family Advisory Committee, which helps Fabijanic learn what families in the community need and what will benefit them the most.

“That’s really important, working with people with disabilities,” says Fabijanic. “I don’t know what our community needs until I hear from them. And, I want to plan with people, not just for them.”

A Legacy of Inclusion

With its commitment to inclusion, community and well-being, the therapeutic recreation program at Glenwood Springs Parks and Recreation is a shining example of how parks and recreation can make a difference in the lives of every individual, despite their real or perceived limitations, and truly build community.

“I love to see the joy that recreation can bring somebody. And, ultimately, that’s what I’m here to do — make the world a better place,” says Fabijanic. “We’ll start with Glenwood Springs.”

To hear more from Laine Fabijanic, tune in to the July bonus episode of Open Space Radio.

To learn more and celebrate “Where Community Grows” during Park and Recreation Month, click here.

Cort Jones is Senior Manager of Digital Content at NRPA.