July 2023 - Parks & Recreation - 36

PARK AND RECREATION MONTH
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
Laine Fabijanic's approach to therapeutic
recreation at Glenwood Springs
Parks and Recreation is the definition of
inclusive.
36 Parks & Recreation | JULY 2 0 2 3
| PARK S ANDRECRE AT ION . OR G
PHOTO COURTESY OF JOE VAN WYK, CITY OF
GLENWOOD SPRINGS PARKS AND RECREATION
July 2023 - Parks & Recreation

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