As if on cue, the rain stopped near the end of the indoors celebration at Hanmer School. Everyone moved out of the cafeteria / auditorium and headed toward Mikey's Place at the northwest corner of Standish Park. Though the grounds were wet, the happy throng approached the main entrance of Mikey's Place, the south gait. No one was going to let the weather dampen the joy which filled the air...

The main entrance of Mikey's Place is comprised of two tall masonry pillars and the arched, wrought iron and steel sign joining them. It announced to all that this is

The Daversa's found many ways to thank and recognize those people and businesses which contributed very substantially to the building of Mikey's Place. Balloon shaped plaques gave credit to their generosity on the east side of the west pillar and the west and northern side of the eastern pillar. On the northern side of the western pillar were smaller brass balloons memorializing loved ones of other contributors.

Seth English, Deacon of Sacred Heart Roman Catholic Church, and Vicki Huffman, director of children's religious education at First Church of Christ Congregational (both in Old Wethersfield) offered prayers of invocation and dedication prior to the ribbon cutting. Vicki's prayer is offered here. [Back] to return.

This was not to be an ordinary ribbon cutting. A paper chain made by the students of Hanmer School was stretched between the pillars of Mikey's gateway. With a large group of children looking on, Danielle Daversa (Mikey's sister) officially cut the ribbon opening Mikey's Place shortly before noon on Saturday, June 2, 2001, just a couple weeks more than three years since Mikey's death.

  Despite a light drizzle, everyone poured into Mikey's Place,.....

  ... eager to try it out. Adults watched and walked and stood and pushed (swings) and caught (kids at the foot of slides) and chatted...

  ... and the kids ran and jumped and climbed and crawled and slid and made a lot of joyous noise...

  ... and still others were able to enjoy a playscape in a way that they had never been able to before ...

  And so it is that Mikey's Place came to be. Where one breath ceased, many how heaved and hollered in oblivious fun. Where one set of eyes closed, many others were opened wide to the light of love. Where a family was tested with a great loss, they responded with a great act of charity to families all around.

  Mikey and Mom, so far apart, yet so close, and always forever...

Thanks for having taking the time to take this journey with us. We hope that you have been able to appreciate the love and effort that went into the actual building of Mikey's Place at Standish Park in Old Wethersfield, Connecticut.

We hope that you will come back here periodically to see what has changed.

As time goes one, wethersfield.net will add images of the happy faces of all the children for whom this fantastic playscape was built. A great community effort was made to indeed make this "a happy place for every face!"

To the extended Daversa / Huffman family, we extend our most heartfelt thanks for allowing us to chronicle this most private part of your lives.