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Mother Is On A Mission

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By JOYCE McKENZIE

jmckenzie@tampatrib.com

Published: December 31, 2008

TEMPLE TERRACE - Connie Ellis marvels at the way her good friend Renee Blain has taken a negative family situation and turned it into a positive, public undertaking.

Two years ago, Blain's daughter Allie, now 5, was diagnosed with idiopathic thrombocytopenic purpura, an immune disorder in which her spleen attacks her body's platelets, the blood-clotting agents that help protect her from the life-threatening risk of severe hemorrhaging.

Allie's ailment requires that she be constantly monitored and protected from falls and other injuries that could lead to bleeding. Unlike her sister, Abbie, 8, and other children their ages in the family's Temple Terrace neighborhood, Allie is unable to ride a bike or play in the nearby park.

To rectify the latter issue, Blain has made it her mission to establish the city's first adaptive park at the Omar K. Lightfoot Recreation Center on 56th Street and Whiteway Drive.

She has met with City Manager Kim Leinbach to get his input and with Leisure Services Director James Chambers to discuss the park's design and its projected $65,000 cost.

Chambers said the county has earmarked $60,000 for the project, and the city will donate a yet undermined amount that is dependent on what money is left over from the recreation center's major renovation, slated to be completed in January.

"The biggest thing about this kind of park is accessibility and surfacing," said Chambers, who noted that in order for wheelchairs to easily maneuver throughout the facility, the park's floor will require a concrete under slab covered by compressed rubber mulch. Because concrete is impervious to water, a special drainage system also will need to be installed.

"I think our family's dream would be to see a park where people of all abilities can play," Blain said. "My biggest goal is that a child without disabilities can play with people who have disabilities."

Blain's husband, Wally, said Allie's condition has challenged his wife, who quit her teaching job to care for her youngest child, to do something good for all kids in the community "rather than sit back and complain about it or worry about tomorrow."

Renee Blain has also been in the process of organizing a nine-hole "glow-in-the-dark" golf tournament and family fun night on March 13 at Temple Terrace Golf & Country Club to help raise additional money for playground equipment.

In addition, she has spearheaded a gala the following night at the club as a fundraiser for Clouds of Hope, a nonprofit organization founded by the Blains to support other families of children with life-altering illnesses.

"Here she is as a parent having to watch everything that Allie does, but she will not rest until the park project is done," said Ellis, the mother of five whose children and friends are holding lemonade sales and other fundraising events of their own for the cause.

"They are as excited as we are, and I think these kids are learning how to be caring and compassionate, something many children of our generation seem to have lost."

Temple Terrace Councilwoman Alison Fernandez and a friend of Renee's said her actions reflect on the type of people who live in the community.

"Individuals see a need and step up to do a job," Fernandez said. "Sometimes you are not aware of a need until you are faced with it yourself."

Reporter Joyce McKenzie can be reached at (813) 865-4849.

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