Helping to Make-A-Wish Come True

Paxton has a very special power: he can light up the world with one of his energetic and inspirational smiles. Paxton uses that superpower every day as he fights battles with cerebral palsy and dysphasia. These disorders cause him to have involuntary muscle contractions that cause repetitive twisting movements and cause him to be nonverbal. That’s why that smile carries so much power. He takes on the challenges that come with this enemy with a sense of humor and an unbridled thirst for life! Make-A-Wish, Exscape Designs, and Payne & Payne Renovations & Design collaborated to help Paxton find a place to take that thirst for life on some exciting adventures: His very own backyard oasis!

Paxton’s exuberance can’t be contained by the four walls of a house. Paxton likes to be outdoors where he can fish, be taken for a walk, and play with trains. All of these activities provide sensory stimulation and relaxation, two things that are huge therapeutic necessities for a child fighting cerebral palsy. The problem was that Paxton’s backyard wasn’t handicap accessible, and it also didn’t have much shade, so he couldn’t take full advantage of his yard for the backyard activities that are so vital to his therapy and treatment.

Enter Make-A-Wish and the teams at Exscape Designs and Payne & Payne Renovations & Design.

Paxton’s family contacted Make-A-Wish to request a “backyard oasis” area that would provide Paxton with the accessible equipment he needs to enjoy the space (including an accessible swing), and if at all possible, he really wanted a pond where he could watch some fish and relax by the water. One look at the pictures of that infectious smile and Make-A-Wish made the call to Exscape Designs and Payne & Payne Renovations & Design to step in and come up with some ideas for Paxton’s Oasis.

The results were one happy little boy and a family relieved to be able to have a space in their yard built just to accommodate Paxton’s challenging requirements.

The teams built out a new patio and created several walkways to make accessing the space easy for Paxton’s wheelchair. There were flower beds complete with trees for shade placed around an awesome water feature that even includes Paxton’s very own waterfall! Lighting was installed to ensure that the fun doesn’t have to end at sundown, and decorative stone was placed to complete the transformation of the area from just a backyard to a true oasis.

We’d like to extend a special thanks to these amazing vendors who donated the materials to make this dream come true:

• Sagamore Companies
• Kurtz Bros., Inc.
• Chagrin Valley Nurseries, Inc.
• Wolf Creek Company
• The Thomas Brick Company
• TJ Smith Excavating
• Van Ness Stone, Inc.
• R.W. Sidley, Inc.

Exscape Designs and Payne & Payne Renovations & Design were honored to be a part of this exciting project, and we hope that helps Paxton continue to light up the world with that smile. We were all so are proud to partner with Make-A-Wish and we look forward to getting more opportunities like this one in the future!

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