Anna & Abby’s Yard

A magical place inspired by the love of Anna & Abby; where people of all ages and abilities will experience the joy of play, the wonder of nature and the peace of community connection. 

Thank you all so much for the kind words regarding the opening of Anna & Abby’s Yard. We are overwhelmed with gratitude and have no words to express how our hearts truly feel. It’s been a surreal week. Alice has really enjoyed having kids at her “Sisters’ Yard” to play with. I have a feeling that there will be many friendships fostered for her in this space. I believe that is just another way Anna and Abby will care for their little sister from Heaven.

The past 7 years we have been so blessed to work with so many amazing and talented people. We are so grateful to each and every person that has been involved in Anna & Abby’s Yard and we truly can’t thank them enough for their talent and dedication.Tom Gamble, Matt Baum, and the City of Forest Grove; Christina Frank and Melissa Erikson of MIG, Inc; Cody Goldberg and the team at Harper’s Playground; Tony Velarde of Carlton Lake Specialty Sawmill; Kodiak Pacific Construction; and our dear friend Martha Rainey ~ each of these people will forever hold a special place in our hearts. Their dedication and commitment to making Anna & Abby’s Yard a reality means the world to us and we are so grateful and blessed to call all of them friends!

Anna & Abby’s Yard wouldn’t be the same without the giant sequoia that once stood next to the park. The Fitzgerald family had to make a very difficult decision to take down their beloved tree a few years ago and we are so grateful that they have allowed us to use the tree to make Anna & Abby’s Yard what it is – magical. Our families will forever be connected!!!

The community of Forest Grove has supported us, loved us, cared for our friends and neighbors, and have helped us make Anna & Abby’s Yard possible. We are so grateful for the generosity of those in our community (and beyond) who have held fundraisers, sold lemonade, given monetarily, and volunteered their time. Anna & Abby’s Yard is truly a space that has been built with love and by many. We feel so blessed to be part of a community that is so filled with love and joy!!!

Update 12/28/2020 ~ Anna & Abby’s Yard is OPEN!!!!

Update 4/24/2020: Today we broke ground for Anna & Abby’s Yard!!!

We are so excited that this moment is finally here. After 6 1/2 years of dreaming, planning, and fundraising, our community will finally see a lot of movement at Rogers Park. Fences will go up, big trucks will come in, a giant sequoia tree will come back to its final resting spot and Anna & Abby’s Yard will finally come to life.

Today was such a blessing to our hearts and we are so grateful for the continued love and support from so many. We miss our girls so much and we cannot wait to invite everyone to come and play in their yard.

Update 8/2018:  When are they going to get started on Anna & Abby’s Yard? That is the #1 question I have gotten all summer long as Alice and I have played at Rogers Park. It is a very good question as our hope was that we were going to get started this summer. Then, something amazing happened which shifted the plan a bit.

Last week I sat down with the city of Forest Grove’s park department and with MIG (the landscaping design firm working on this project) to talk about the overall design and to brainstorm more ideas for Anna and Abby’s Yard and how it will fit into the larger scope of Rogers Park. I will say that I walked away with so much happiness in my heart and a vision of a truly magical place that will celebrate the lives of my daughters. The overall design of Anna and Abby’s Yard has changed since our original drawings/video but we are confident that the new plans that are in the works are something this community will love. We will be incorporating pieces of our old design from GameTime and weaving that with a more natural play space that will truly set Anna and Abby’s Yard apart from your typical playground. Our goal is to have a place where families can explore nature, play, experience life together and feel love and joy in one of Forest Grove’s beloved parks.

Update 6/2015: Tom and I just asked the City Council of Forest Grove to accept a donation in the form of Anna 7 Abby’s Yard to be placed at Rogers Park. We decided to change the location because we felt that making the donation to the city was a better fit for our family. We are very excited about this change and are still moving forward. To date, we have raised just over $100,000. ❤

Update 5/2015: The design for the playground is finally done. We are now working with the District Office and working out specifics with them. Fundraising is in full force with our first Annual Love Rocks Run happening on June 27th with the proceeds to this years run going to Anna and Abby’s Yard. Grants are being written and we will be doing a crowdfunding campaign mid-summer. We are excited and looking forward to the home stretch.

Update 3/2015: It’s happening ~ slowly but surely!

Update 12/2015: As we approach the end of the year we are so grateful to all of those who have given in some way or another to Anna & Abby’s Yard. In Nov. we met with Game Time and Forest Grove Recreation and are very excited about the new location of Anna and Abby’s Yard at Rogers Park. We also opened a GoFundMe page at https://www.gofundme.com/annaandabbysyard as a place to accept donations and spread awareness of what we are trying to do to honor our daughters. As of Jan. we will have a new little one in our family and we are very excited that Anna and Abby’s Yard will be a place that she will go to feel the love of not only our community but also feel the love and joy of her sisters.

Update 10/2014: We started an Anna & Abby’s Yard Facebook page that will be updated with fundraisers, plans and eventually will let everyone know when we will be opening the park (smiling). Head here to get more frequent updates ~ Anna & Abby’s Yard Facebook Page.

Update 7/2014: Plans are drawn for the new play structure and we are now beginning the next phase, raising funds. We are in the process of developing a Kickstarter campaign that will hopefully go live in the next month. We are working on an informational video, layout of rewards for the campaign and also working with a landscape architect on getting all of our ideas into a drawing. We are excited and can see our vision for this space slowly taking shape. There are smiles in Heaven I’m sure.

Update 3/2014: We are working hard on the plans for the new playground/park behind the District Office. Here is a post that talks about our playground meetings with Anna and Abigail’s friends.

Playground Meeting

Abby & Anna’s Yard

If you are interested in volunteering with fundraising, pulling together of resources or building please send a message to alovedrenchedlife@gmail.com.

If you are interested in making a donation please go to harpersplayground.org.