Colin's Corner opens in Maple Park

May 12—One year after Caitlin and Garret Boyd lost their 4-year-old son to cancer, the young boy's memory was honored by community leaders with the opening of Colin's Corner, a sensory-sensitive play feature added to Maple Park in Yuba City.

City staff and residents gathered on Wednesday to hold a ribbon cutting ceremony for the new playground, which features activities for children with disabilities, including autism.

Colin Boyd was diagnosed with both autism and stage three Rhabdomyosarcoma, a very rare form of cancer that affects the soft tissues and connective muscles of the body. Colin Boyd's autism would sometimes cause sensory issues and the tumor on his hip hindered his mobility.

Caitlin Boyd said that her biggest goal in establishing Colin's Corner was to provide children with disabilities and sensory issues a place to play comfortably.

"Handicap accessibility is required in schools, it's required in stores, but parks don't have it. We wanted to get this up because kids should have space to be kids," Caitlyn Boyd said.

Before her son's passing, Boyd connected with Community Services Director Brad McIntire to see if there was anything she could do to help make her son's favorite park a more inviting space.

"I thought that they were going to install one or two pieces of equipment, but it's snowballed into what we have now. It's been amazing peeking from my window each day to see their progress," Boyd said.

Colin's Corner serves as an extension of Maple Park's existing playground, which was also upgraded using funds through a Community Development Block Grant program, the Appeal previously reported.

Yuba City Parks and Recreation Supervisor Ernesto Hernandez said that Colin's Corner was designed to help autistic and disabled children engage with a sensory-friendly space including a soft pour-in play surface and colorful, textured play equipment.

"We wanted to highlight visual and textured sensory items. Everything here has a little bit of physical challenge like the climbing holes, but we have a resting bench too," Hernandez said.

Construction for the playground began in early March and Colin's Corner took around four days to complete, Hernandez said.

The project cost an estimated $65,000, with $15,000 being donated by the Friends of the Parks Foundation as well as friends and family of the Boyds. Yuba City contributed around $50,000 to the project, District 2 Councilmember Marc Boomgaarden said.

Before the ribbon cutting, Caitlin and Garret Boyd placed a sign on the playground, putting the finishing touches on Colin's Corner.

"This new play feature will give families with children with disabilities a space where kids can be kids," Yuba City Mayor Wade Kirchner said. "Colin's Corner is officially open."

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