In the waning days of summer last September, Kara McClurken peered through a tall, chain-link fence at Pen Park where a construction worker measured and cut wood for an all-abilities tree house that would memorialize her son, Bennett McClurken-Gibney.

Bennett, who had spinal muscular atrophy, a genetic disorder that causes muscular weakness, died in February 2018 at age 5. Before his unexpected death, Bennett had longed to celebrate his next birthday at Park365, an all-abilities park in Chesterfield County near Richmond that he enjoyed visiting with his family, said McClurken.

Although Bennett did not live to celebrate his birthday at his favorite park, many of his family members, friends and others in the Charlottesville community will commemorate his life at a similar space — a new playground known as Bennett’s Village — on Sunday, April 27.

The “Party in the Park” event will feature the official opening of an all-accessible treehouse, a family accessible bathroom and “Josie’s Way,” a paved walking path below the treehouse. The event will include food vendors, face painting, balloon animals and a silent disco, according to organizers.

The celebration, from 1p.m. to 5 p.m., is being co-hosted by Bennett’s Village, Charlottesville Parks and Recreation, and the family of Josie Klotz at Pen Park, 1300 Pen Park Road, Charlottesville.

The official celebration of the playground’s opening has been years in the making. 

The idea to create the play area came to McClurken and Bennett’s father, Brian Gibney, as they left their son’s Johnson Elementary School the day after he died.

While walking past the school’s playground, they looked at each other seemingly with the same thought, McClurken told Charlottesville Tomorrow last September: What if they made his dream come true?

McClurken connected with the city’s Department of Parks and Recreation with the intention of creating an all-abilities park nearby. The city agreed to provide the land and continue to maintain the new play space that would include more than three acres of inclusive play areas. Bennett’s Village had to provide the funding for the playground.

A woman stands in front of a large treehouse built of wood, with large trees visible in the background through the windows. A sign above the door reads 'The Treehouse at Bennett's Village.'
Kara McClurken stands in front of the Bennett’s Village treehouse, which will celebrate its official opening in Pen Park on April 27, 2025. McClurken’s son Bennett McClurken-Gibney, who had spinal muscular atrophy, died unexpectedly in 2018 at age 5. McClurken led an effort to build an all-abilities play space in his memory. Credit: Kori Price/Charlottesville Tomorrow

Pen Park was selected because it has the most space for what McClurken envisioned for the park, she told Charlottesville Tomorrow last fall. By the end of 2018, a GoFundMe campaign raised $40,000 for the playground, and in 2020 Bennett’s Village became a nonprofit organization with its mission to make the world a more inclusive place for everyone to play. 

Fundraising and support for the estimated $7 million total project has come from charitable foundations, grants, corporate sponsorships and individual donors, said McClurken. The project is currently planned in phases, with the treehouse being part of the first phase.

“We did raise $500,000 for the treehouse and paving of the path below it,” said McClurken. Another $500,000 that was raised will pay for construction documents, landscape architects, designers,  equipment specialists and civil engineers, she said. 

“These funds came from many places — from individual community members, foundations, state and local governments. It’s been a community effort,” McClurken added. 

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A free “Party in the Park” event is scheduled for Sunday, April 27, from 1p.m. to 5 p.m. at Pen Park, 1300 Pen Park Road, Charlottesville.

The event celebrates the official opening of Bennett’s Village, a new all-abilities play space and the first of its kind in Charlottesville. The event, which is co-hosted by Bennett’s Village, Charlottesville Parks and Recreation, and the family of Josie Klotz, will include food vendors, face painting, balloon animals and a silent disco. Read more about the event here.

A woman sits in a newly constructed wooden treehouse next to an electrical outlet with two plugs. A deck with a guardrail and trees are visible through a nearby door and windows.
Kara McClurken sits in the treehouse in Bennett’s Village, an all-abilities play space in Pen Park in Charlottesville. The treehouse includes electrical outlets, which were requested during community feedback sessions. The outlets can help keep motorized chairs and other medical equipment charged, as well as helping families keep phones charged so as not to miss important calls from doctor’s offices, McClurken said. Credit: Kori Price/Charlottesville Tomorrow

In addition to fundraising, Bennett’s Village’s organizers and supporters — from landscape architects, civil engineers and medical practitioners — have provided advice about working with children who have challenges or special needs. As a result, ideas for future designs include calming stations for people who are “overstimulated and just had a rough day and need a bit of quiet,” said McClurken.

Also, the city installed one adult changing table to be used by folks of all ages in the current bathrooms, but the playground’s designs for the additional bathrooms include adding a second changing table, McClurken added.

Other needs for future phases include additional electrical outlets to charge medical equipment and mobile devices, along with construction and design experts who can suggest materials that support a range of users who may be in wheelchairs or require cochlear implants.

“Every time we talk to someone in the community, we learn something new,” said McClurken. She and the designers are also planning to add parts of the play space that will feature equipment specifically for adults to build balance and strength. 

“Some parents don’t always get the exercise they want,” she said. “Design space to support that is important.”

Yuki Weaver, who is board chair of Bennett’s Village, applauds the support the nonprofit has received in building the treehouse.

“As we move forward from the success of the treehouse, we need more community support to bring the next phases to life,” Weaver said in an email. “That means volunteers and donors. We’re looking for folks to join the board and committees, support our fundraising efforts, and generally help us keep the momentum going.” 

Neither McClurken or Weaver have a firm date for the playground’s completion. The board will continue to work closely with the city to build the project in stages as funding becomes available.

Meanwhile, the community would like the playspace to remain open as much as possible during the ongoing construction of Bennett’s Village, said McClurken.

“The next part of the project to be built includes water, sewer, electrical infrastructure components — we’ve got to get that stuff completed below the ground before we can start building the exciting equipment on top of the ground,” she said. “We’ll work on the center sections first and work our way out. It’s an exciting time.”

Seeing how the playground thus far has helped build community while providing a place for people to come together to play is an example of how Bennett lived his life, said McClurken.

“He brought people together,” she said. “He would bat his long eyelashes at them and smile. This is my way to honor him, and it’s good to know the difference we are making.”

Editor’s note: We’ve edited this report to correct the date that Bennetts Village Inc. became a nonprofit.

Greetings! I started working for newspapers, mostly in Richmond, Virginia, four decades ago. News never stops and so far, neither have I. I'm Charlottesville Tomorrow's first editor-at-large.