Foundation Launches Campaign for Playground
By Cynthia Drummond for BRVCA
April 16th 2025
RICHMOND – The demise of the playground at Richmond Elementary School was sudden. One day, children were playing on it, then it was deemed unsafe and condemned, and finally, last week, it was removed altogether.
Chariho Superintendent of Schools Gina Picard said the school district’s insurer, The Trust, requires safety inspections of playgrounds, and the Richmond School playground, which was more than 35 years old, was found to be unsafe.
“As part of The Trust, we have to have members of our team trained in playground inspections,” she said. “We couldn’t replace any pieces, and it had to come down completely.”
New playground equipment is expected to cost about $200,000, and there are a couple of obstacles to overcome: There is no playground equipment funding in the recently approved Chariho budget, and school district policy prohibits groups like the Richmond Elementary School PTO from fundraising.
The Community Steps Up
After learning of the playground’s removal, and speaking with school Principal Sharon Martin and the Potts family, Maddie Potts Foundation Treasurer Melissa DeJoseph launched an online fundraising campaign.
The nonprofit foundation was started in 2017 by Stephanie, Dan and Julia Potts in memory of Maddie Potts, who passed away from a brain aneurysm during a soccer game at Chariho High School.
Maddie Potts attended Richmond Elementary School, and the foundation, which supports community initiatives, started the GoFundMe campaign on April 11, the date of what would have been Maddie’s 25th birthday.
The playground equipment is expected to cost $200,000, and the goal of the new campaign is $111,000.
“I knew something needed to happen and I knew it wasn’t going to be in this year’s [Chariho] budget,” DeJoseph said. “As you know, we just passed this year’s budget, so if it goes through the normal channels of the budget, it would be at least a year before we would even possibly get it approved.”
A professional grant writer, DeJoseph is aware of how much effort goes into a funding request and how long it can take for a decision. After talking with Martin, DeJoseph said the decision was made to start raising money immediately.
With 100 additional students attending the school next fall after Hope Valley Elementary School closes, the playground will be more important than ever.
Gina Picard thanked the foundation for launching the online campaign.
“I am deeply moved and immensely grateful for the Maddie Potts Foundation's decision to sponsor a GoFundMe campaign for the Richmond Elementary School playground,” she wrote in a letter to the foundation. “This generous initiative, especially on what would have been Maddie's 25th birthday, is a beautiful testament to her enduring legacy and the foundation's unwavering commitment to our community.”
Sharon Martin also sent a letter of thanks to the foundation.
“Your dedication to honoring Maddie's memory through acts of kindness and support continues to inspire us all. The Chariho community is truly fortunate to have such compassionate partners like you. Please know that we are wholeheartedly excited about this endeavor and stand ready to support it in any way we can.”
The Fundraising Policy
The school district has a policy prohibiting organizations and individuals within the district, such as the PTO and Martin, from fundraising for items that would normally be included in the budget.
Richmond School PTO President Thea Brennan attended last week’s School Committee meeting to request an amendment to the policy, or a waiver that would allow her group to raise money for the playground.
“We’ve got a bunch of different ideas floating out there,” Brennan said. “We fundraise throughout the year, just to make our budget for events and stuff we do at the school, so really it would be on top of that. Once we have our budget funds, we would really just be looking at targeting specific fundraisers that we come up with to raise funds for the playground, because we’re going to need so much for the playground.”
Brennan said the Richmond playground, as well as playgrounds at other Chariho schools, have usually been the casualties of budget cuts.
“These playgrounds have been in capital improvement planning for years, and then, they constantly get cut, because there’s this movement to cut budgets,” she said. “Ours just ended up condemned and closed because it got to a place of being structurally unsound.”
Brennan has also asked the Richmond Town Council to provide financial support to the playground. The council agreed to consider the request after the School Committee discusses it at the May 13 meeting.
In the Meantime
While fundraising for playground equipment continues, the Maddie Potts Foundation has donated $1,000 for toys and outdoor games the children can play with now.
“I got some jump ropes and some hula hoops and a cornhole game and a spike ball and sidewalk chalk,”
DeJoseph said. “Right now, it’s like a big sand pit back there.”
Martin said the children would appreciate the toys and games.
“Our students are going to be thrilled to have recess games as an alternative to their playground structure,” she wrote in her thank you letter.
As of Tuesday morning, the GoFundMe campaign had raised $10,020, or 9% of its goal.
“We need a playground for the Richmond community,” Brennan said “The Richmond Rec campers use it, the YMCA uses it, so it seems silly to me that we couldn’t fundraise for it, so I wanted to bring awareness, because it’s going to take the entire community. It’s all hands on deck.”
