Josh, Ric, Tony and I went to Memorial Park in Taunton yesterday to do a wheelchair accessibility review. We packed a picnic lunch so we could spend some time at the park.

The entrance to Memorial Park is off of Rte 138. There is a parking lot right up front in this park but there are NO Handicap parking spaces in this parking lot which my friends and I found odd. Getting from the parking lot into the park is easy and not a long wheel or walk.

There are no picnic tables at this park so we ate our lunch under a big tree near a big rock. It was a hot and sunny day but was very relaxing and comfortable sitting under this tree for it provided much shade.

There is a cement walkway in front of the park that brings you all the way near the swing sets. The swing sets are not wheelchair accessible but my friend Ric enjoyed swinging on the swings and I enjoyed watching him have fun. I have been on a wheelchair accessible swing and it was really great to feel the breeze when I swung in the air. I wish at least some of our Parks in the State would look into getting a wheelchair accessible swing.

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The cement walkway ends at the area where the swing sets are located. From here you will need to wheel along a dirt path that leads you into the woods. I was in a manual wheelchair today for my Quantum Power Wheelchair is in for needed repairs.

This dirt path was easy for my friend to push my wheelchair on and would have led us the other side of the park but we encountered a big puddle of water. We couldn’t get by the water for it blocked the path and it was all muddy in this area and my wheelchair couldn’t wheel in the mud.

We were told that the other side has a play area for kids and it is considered another Park. We’re not sure what the name of this other Park is. Memorial Park that I went to yesterday is wheelchair accessible and I had no problems getting around in my wheelchair until I encountered the big puddle of water on the dirt path.

There are many dedicated memorials at this Park which we enjoyed seeing. The biggest Memorial is dedicated to Taunton’s Departed Fireman and it reads “To the memory of our departed members – Taunton Fire Department erected 1947.

The next biggest Memorial is for Peter A Gay and all who died on September 11, 2001. It reads “In memory of Peter A. Gay and all who perished on September 11, 2001. We shall never forget” and then it says under that “Those who live no more, whom we loved, echo still within our thoughts, our words, our hearts and what they did and who they became part of all that we are forever”

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There are 2 memorials dedicated to the American Legion 103, the first one was erected in May of 1966 and the second one was erected in may of 1969. There is an American Flag on the biggest one.

There is one small Memorial dedicated to a family member who died in the Vietnam War. It’s my personal favorite. It’s a small memorial that reads “In Memory of USMC Lance Andrews KIA Vietnam April 1st 1969. This is the memorial I liked the best because it is very personal and I could sense the love and loss this family felt.

My friends and I really enjoyed having lunch at this park today and especially enjoyed seeing all the memorials that were dedicated to many lives lost. Some lives were lost due to a good cause and then there was 911 when so many lives were sadly lost for no good reason other than the hatred of the terrorists.

I give Memorial Park in Taunton FOUR STARS for wheelchair accessibility. They can earn the other Star if they add a picnic table that is wheelchair accessible. I didn’t take Stars away for not being able to get through the woods on the dirt path as I was told that this path was only created by people walking through the woods to get to the park on the other side. My friends and I will go to the other Park on the other side soon to see how wheelchair accessible it is.

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