Oct. 6, 2025 5:15p
(WGTD)---Sometimes the journey is just as impactful as the destination.
Tammy Conforti—the driving force behind the community build and fundraising effort that led to the $1 million fully-accessible Dream Playground in Kenosha 10 years ago—is still involved in building similar play areas in other towns.
“When I find out about (a build), I reach out to the (organizer) and I communicate with them and I drive up and sign up as a volunteer and help out,” Conforti said. “It’s great. Nobody knows who I am. Nobody is asking me questions. It’s very different when you’re on a build than when you’re in charge of a build.”
Why does she do it? “Because of the energy and the buzz of the people working together for one common goal. We have a lot of division in the world but when you go on a build everybody is working together,” she said.
Elbow grease aside, Conforti and other Dream Playground veterans lend their expertise and advice when called upon.
This past weekend, Conforti presided over the anniversary celebration of the Dream Playground, located at Petzke Park on the city’s north side.
She was joined by many of the volunteers who were part of the project 10 years ago, including Amity Forsythe, whose inability to play on standard playground equipment as a child sparked Conforti’s interest in an all-accessible playground.
Amity is now a senior at Tremper High School. “It doesn’t really feel that it’s been 10 years,” she said.
The organization that birthed the Dream Playground is still in existence, collecting money through the sale of personalized messages that are posted on the picket fence that surrounds the park. Donations are now put toward playground maintenance, supplementing what the city funds.
There’s another reason for the group to stick around, says KUSD special education Teacher Katie Briggs, who served as the Dream Playground’s volunteer coordinator 10 years ago. “There are still people in our community that don’t know about it,” she said.
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