{"id":1335,"date":"2018-10-05T20:41:55","date_gmt":"2018-10-05T20:41:55","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.foreverredwood.com\/blog\/?p=1335"},"modified":"2022-03-07T20:56:33","modified_gmt":"2022-03-07T20:56:33","slug":"redwood-picnic-table-outdoor-experience-accessible","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.foreverredwood.com\/blog\/redwood-picnic-table-outdoor-experience-accessible\/","title":{"rendered":"A redwood picnic table, and an outdoor experience, that’s accessible to ALL"},"content":{"rendered":"

Mary E. MacDonald draws upon her life experiences to find solutions and help others. It\u2019s what compelled her to become a speaker, author, coach, and chaplain for caregivers. And it\u2019s what inspired her and her spouse, Karl R. Ackerman, to create Rest.Stop.Ranch\u00ae, a wheelchair-accessible garden for the aging, disabled, and their care partners.<\/p>\n

According to Mary, \u201cWe don\u2019t think of the garden as our own. We are building something that\u2019s beautiful and functional for the people who need it most.\u201d<\/p>\n

Mary has firsthand knowledge of this need. In 2008, her mother, Margaret, died from a rare degenerative brain disease. Mary had been her mother\u2019s primary caregiver, regularly traveling back and forth from Boston, Massachusetts, to Syracuse, New York. After her mother\u2019s death, Mary dealt not only with her grief but also with health issues, exhaustion, and burnout, symptoms that many caregivers suffer from because of inadequate self-care and the absence of a supportive community.<\/p>\n

Because of this experience, Mary chose not to return to the corporate world and her successful career as a web design consultant. She felt called to aid care partners, the aging, and the disabled \u2014 folks like her and her mother \u2014 in finding support, relief, and even moments of joy and delight.<\/p>\n

Rest.Stop.Ranch\u00ae is born<\/strong><\/p>\n

Just before her mother\u2019s death, Mary and Karl purchased a home on four acres of land in Topsfield, Massachusetts, and relocated there. As a lover of the outdoors, Mary held a \u201cheart intention\u201d to share that experience with people affected by long-term illness and disability.<\/p>\n

By Fall 2011, she and Karl had developed seven small gardens in memory of Mary\u2019s mother and connected them with a 5 ft. wide, compacted-stone loop. They would eventually christen their project \u201cRest.Stop.Ranch,\u201d one of the few wheelchair-accessible gardens in New England.<\/p>\n

Mary & Karl\u2019s monthly \u201cSunday Stroll\u201d program, May-October, allowed the disabled, aging, and their care partners to wander past lilies, roses, raspberry bushes, and fruit trees. A koi pond and a variety of birds further enhanced this slice of paradise.<\/p>\n

But something was missing. An independent wheelchair user told Mary that while she was delighted with the gardens, she longed for a place where she could pull off the trail to be still, reflect, and possibly even enjoy a sandwich. Mary and Karl went into action. With the help of a local landscaper, the Wheelchair-Accessible Pear Tree Patio was completed in Fall 2015.<\/p>\n

Memory Caf\u00e9 in the Garden\u00ae<\/strong><\/p>\n

In Spring 2016, Mary and Karl\u2019s Memory Caf\u00e9 in the Garden\u00ae was one of thirteen Memory Caf\u00e9s in Massachusetts to receive seed funding from the state’s Department of Developmental Services. Memory Caf\u00e9s provide a safe, welcoming, and fun environment for families impacted by Alzheimer\u2019s\/Dementia.<\/p>\n

Right away, Mary earmarked part of the funding for the purchase of a picnic table, accessible to all, for the Pear Tree Patio. The ability to customize the picnic table was a top priority.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe knew we\u2019d need something custom,\u201d Mary said. \u201cThe structure of a standard picnic table wouldn\u2019t work for folks with canes, walkers, or wheelchairs.\u201d<\/p>\n

The use of redwood as a material was important as well. \u201cWe needed furniture that could go through the winter beatings of the Northeast and come out each spring just as great as it was before.\u201d<\/p>\n

After conducting their online research, Mary and Karl decided that Forever Redwood would best meet their needs. They worked with the Forever Redwood team on a custom order for a 10 ft. redwood picnic table, along with four redwood benches and two redwood armchairs.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe Forever Redwood team worked with us to finalize the table\u2019s dimensions, offering a few different width options. We choose the one that would allow our guests to have easy access around the table, whether the benches and armchairs were snug up against it or out a few inches.\u201d<\/p>\n

The resulting rest area has been a great success. Wheelchair users can comfortably wheel around the patio and walker users can ambulate with ease. Mary and Karl surrounded the patio with bird feeders so visitors are treated to 360\u00b0 bird watching during their picnic lunches.<\/p>\n

\u201cIn fact,\u201d said Mary, \u201cgathering around the Forever Redwood picnic table has become the signature photo for visitors to Rest.Stop.Ranch!\u201d<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>
\nMary offered a final reflection, “For many people, our Forever Redwood picnic table has become the anchor of the whole experience.”<\/p>\n

Learn more about Mary E. MacDonald<\/a> and Rest.Stop.Ranch\u00ae<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Mary E. MacDonald draws upon her life experiences to find solutions and help others. It\u2019s what compelled her to become a speaker, author, coach, and chaplain for caregivers. And it\u2019s what inspired her and her spouse, Karl R. Ackerman, to create Rest.Stop.Ranch\u00ae, a wheelchair-accessible garden for the aging, disabled, and their care partners. According to … A redwood picnic table, and an outdoor experience, that’s accessible to ALL<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":11,"featured_media":1337,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[143,34,31,9,4,1],"tags":[],"yoast_head":"\nA redwood picnic table, and an outdoor experience, that's accessible to ALL - Forever Redwood<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.foreverredwood.com\/blog\/redwood-picnic-table-outdoor-experience-accessible\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"A redwood picnic table, and an outdoor experience, that's accessible to ALL - Forever Redwood\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Mary E. MacDonald draws upon her life experiences to find solutions and help others. It\u2019s what compelled her to become a speaker, author, coach, and chaplain for caregivers. And it\u2019s what inspired her and her spouse, Karl R. Ackerman, to create Rest.Stop.Ranch\u00ae, a wheelchair-accessible garden for the aging, disabled, and their care partners. According to ... 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