Frederick couple’s plan for splash pad to honor late son progresses

By KATHERINE SCHUTZMAN

kschutzman@newspost.com

Plans to bring a splash pad to Frederick’s Baker Park are in motion after four years of fundraising.

Frederick residents Talia and Brent Turner started planning the initiative in 2019 in memory of their son, Simon, who died at 22 months old. The family announced earlier this month on social media that they reached their fundraising goal of $1.6 million after the Frederick County Council allocated $200,000 for the project in its fiscal year 2027 budget.

Mockup designs for the project show a fountain- style splash pad, new walkways and garden features within the park’s existing playground area along North Bentz Street. A paved gathering area will surround the water feature.

The only playground component they plan to remove is the sandbox, Brent Turner said.

“All the other playground equipment and material will still be there and usable,” Brent Turner said. “This will kind of meld in nicely with everything that exists.”

The Turner family worked with the Community Foundation of Frederick County, a nonprofit organization that helps connect community causes with donors and grant opportunities, to fundraise for the project.

Betsy Day, the Community Foundation’s president and CEO, said construction costs have increased since the family started fundraising, meaning the total project cost may exceed their original $1.6 million goal.

“The city told us that we had to have money collected in the bank and ready to go to get a shovel in the dirt, and we’re just about there,” Day said.

Assuming the funds they’ve raised are sufficient, Talia Turner said, they plan to begin construction this fall after finalizing design details with the city’s Parks and Recreation Department and the county’s Health Department.

They hope to have the public ADA accessible splash pad open by April 26, 2027, which would have been Simon’s 10th birthday, she said.

“We feel pretty confident that we have what we need to get started,” Brent Turner said.

“If we could, in an ideal world, get everything ready and done by that date ... it would be the second best way to celebrate his 10th birthday,” Talia Turner said.

Once the splash pad is completed, it will be gifted to and maintained by the city, Brent Turner said.

Concept art for the splash pad also features upgrades to the surrounding playground structures. Brent Turner said their fundraising will only cover the splash pad area’s construction, but they hope the city will refurbish the surrounding area in the future.

Various organizations donated to the project since the Turners began fundraising. The Ausherman Family Foundation, a private philanthropic organization, donated more than $500,000, according to the project’s website. Organizations including the Our Heavenly Cause Foundation and the Natelli Communities Charitable Fund also donated thousands of dollars.

Hundreds of individuals donated to the project, according to its website, with many contributing hundreds or thousands of dollars. The $1.6 million total will go toward the splash pad design, permitting and construction, according to Day.

“The community really came in to support us and get us to where we are now,” Talia Turner said.

Brent Turner said he and Talia decided to honor Simon’s memory with a splash pad because of his love for water. They chose Baker Park because of the memories they made there with Simon, he said.

“After we lost him ... we wanted to do something for the community,” Brent Turner said. “It gives a place for togetherness and laughter, and that’s what the best memories really are.”

Concept art for the completed splash pad at Baker Park.

Courtesy of Mahan Rykiel Associates

Brent and Talia Turner with their sons Simon, left, and Elliot in 2019. Simon died at age 22 months.

Photo courtesy of Brent Turner