A Gloucester County school’s attempt to do just that raising money for an adaptive playground has become an incredibly personal mission for the family of Johnny and Matthew Gaudreau. This Giving Tuesday, the Gaudreaus hope to make the school’s dream a reality in honor of their sons.
“There’s nothing that can bring the boys back, but if they can help build this playground, we thought they would be so happy,” said John and Matthew’s mother, Jane Gaudreau.
Gaudreau worked at Archbishop Damiano School in Westville, New Jersey for more than 40 years and remembers the happy days she spent at school with her sons Johnny and Matthew.
“They played hockey and football, but they didn’t play sports in the spring,” Gaudreau recalled. “And I would go pick them up on my lunch break when they were done with school, and they would come back and volunteer.”
ADS is a second family for the Gaudreaus. Jane’s brother went to special education school. Her mother worked there. Jane and her eldest daughter still work there. Now, next The tragic deaths of Johnny and Matthewthe Gaudreau family wants to honor their memory by helping the school build the long-awaited adaptive playground.
“They really loved kids, and they loved ADS, so we said this would be a perfect opportunity,” Gaudreau said.
ADS is a nonprofit school serving more than 135 students with intellectual and developmental disabilities. The school’s current playground is old, dilapidated and not accessible to everyone. A new playground would include adaptive swings, sensory tables and ramps.
“It’s really moving, and I’m very grateful to her and her family at this time,” said ADS Director Michele McCloskey.
The Gaudreau family has already raised tens of thousands of dollars for the project. A Giving Tuesday campaign is the next step.
They still have a long way to go, but school leaders hope to take the first step in the spring.
“And we hope to make this project a community building project,” McCloskey said. “We hope to recruit anyone who would like to support us and also help us build this playground.”
Building an adaptive playground has been in the making for ADS for years. The school has raised only $160,000 of the $600,000 needed.
Gaudreau said fundraising for this project has helped during this most difficult time.
“It really helped us with our grief to be able to honor the boys’ legacies because this is exactly what they would have wanted,” Gaudreau said. “This is exactly what they would have done. And I know they would look down when the kids are playing, and that will bring so much joy to my husband and my daughters, and John and Matty’s wife, and beyond. their children.”
John and Matthew Gaudreau, two beloved South Jersey hockey players, were killed by a suspected drunk driver on August 29. The brothers were hit while bicycling in Salem County, New Jersey, the night before their sister’s wedding.
To help build ADS’ adaptive playground, visit the school’s website or text ADS24 to 53-555.
