Donations made by Mantua and Gloucester County allowed for the Edelman Fossil Park’s inaugural “Super-Special Fossil Dig” to be successful on April 27.
Natalie Foxhill, events coordinator at the fossil park, said over $1,300 in donations were made by the Mantua Township Democratic Committee, the township’s Independent Association of Firefighters and Gloucester County to build two wheelchair-accessible sandboxes for kids to use, playground equipment and tools to be used that day.
“It was a pillar of what a fantastic community this is,” said Foxhill. “Once they found out about this event, their support was unwavering. It was amazing, and I was surprised and humbled they did this for these children.”
“Obviously we’re out to help out everyone, and noted that kids who have autism, there may not be a lot of public playgrounds for them,” said Committeeman Shawn Layton representing the firefighters and Democratic committee. “So it’s nice when they come to visit the fossil park, they have their own spot to play and dig safely in sandboxes where they can wheel right up to and not have to get out of chairs and do the same things other kids are doing.”
Fossil Park Director Dr. Kenneth Lacovara said the unexpected donations showed the township’s and the county’s support for the park since 2011. The park plans to have programs available for everyone when the museum is built, which has a rough opening of 2021.
The sold-out event started when Foxhill’s son, who has autism, became happy over seeing what can be found at the site, and she wanted to bring that same joy to other children.
During the event, she mentioned the name of the event came after she had a conversation with her son and he had asked her if he was special, to which she said he is “super special.”
She added that larger companies are starting to tweak their job interviews to allow those with autism to get jobs by not basing the interview on social skills.
Lacovara said the dig day further emphasized the idea that the park is meant for everyone to enjoy.
“We want to emphasize that science, discovery and adventure are for everyone,” said Lacovara. “All of the kids here are going to have an adventure and find a 65 million-year-old fossil with their own hands.”
Throughout the two-hour event, kids and their families were able to dig through the quarry to discover fossils from shark teeth, to marine snails to sea turtles.
A “quiet tent” was also set up at the top of the quarry to provide visitors who do not react well to crowds a calm space to “decompress” in.
“It’s really important to be mindful that a lot of autistic children don’t do well in very crowded areas, and we wanted to accommodate as many people as possible, but we also wanted to provide that safe space if the children feel overstimulated,” said Foxhill.
Foxhill and Lacovara said the dig day will be happening each year with the success of this year’s event bringing in families from near and far.
“It’s a huge learning experience for the kids that come here to learn about dinosaurs from 65 million years ago,” said Layton. “To learn about it in a fun way to come to a park to play, dig and learn history is a win-win. Where else can you go to learn history from millions of years ago and have fun and be able to explore?”
