The Moorestown Department of Parks and Recreation thanks Sean Fischel Connect for its continued support
By THERSA MILLER
As the temperatures are cooling, the Department of Parks and Recreation is wrapping up its summer programs. The Department is grateful for the community partnerships that allow it to make recreation for everyone the number one priority. Each summer, the department collaborates with a number of community partners — from Live Civilly and MooreKids to the Moorestown Township Public Schools. One of the department’s key community partners is the Sean Fischel Connect organization. While many Moorestonians know of Sean Fischel Connect, they may not be aware of the monumental impact this organization has had on our local community and activities available through the Department of Parks and Recreation.
The Sean Fischel Connect organization has become best known for the annual 5K Run and Fun Walk it hosts in honor of young Sean Fischel, who lost his tragic struggle against his undetected illness, HLH (Hemophagocytic Lymphohistiocytosis). Following his death in January 2013, the Fischels and their close friends created the annual run in his honor to provide a way of both thanking the community and honoring Sean together. This year, Sean Fischel Connect will host its final 5K and Fun Run to benefit organizations that make a difference in the lives of children. In 2015, Sean Fischel Connect made the Recreation Special Needs Summer Camp a priority and has helped to fund this amazing and important program over the last three years.
It was 2008 when the Recreation Special Needs Summer Camp began. The Department of Parks and Recreation received a grant from the Department of Community Affairs (State of NJ) with 20 percent matching funds donated from Moorestown Township to help provide a consistent system of support for special needs children ages five through 12 and their families. As state funding began to shrink, Community Partners, like the Moorestown Education Foundation, Bayada Home Health Care and Quaker Wealth Management supported the program with donations. Then, when it seemed that the children who were aging out of the program would have nowhere to go, the Special Needs Camp expanded its ages. Where did this support come from? Sean Fischel Connect. The day camp, now in its tenth year, has grown to expand its services to children ages five to 21.
In 2017, the SFC donated $30,000 to the Recreation Special Needs camp to ensure that these young people, and their families, would receive the support they needed. The little remaining money from the donation provided the Recreation Soccer League with t-shirts. The Special Needs Summer Camp has become a priority of Sean Fischel Connect’s donation to the Department of Parks and Recreation. The significance to Kimberly is simple — to provide services for children who are underserved or not covered by other services; to make sure that no child is denied access to a program that helps them to grow and thrive an dto make sure that all children in our community find support.
The Moorestown Department of Parks and Recreation thanks Sean Fischel Connect for its continued support. The Department encourages all readers to donate to, sponsor or participate in the 2017, Fifth and Final Sean Fischel Connect community run.
For more information about the Sean Fischel Connect Run or to sign up visit https://runsignup.com/Race/Register/?raceId=4431#register. For more information about Moorestown Department of Parks and Recreation programs visit www.moorestownrec.com.
