When Sara Ptacek was born with a rare genetic condition, her doctors said she wouldn’t live past age three. Nearly 33 years later, Sara continues to flourish – something her father Bill Ptacek says it has a lot to do with her involvement in the community.

Sara, who is confined to a wheelchair, has always been part of the Bellevue community. She went to Bellevue public schools, visits the Bellevue Arts Museum and goes to church with her family every Sunday.

“We really envision a life for her that is not just at home, but out in the community,” Ptacek said.

That’s why Bellevue’s proposed Inspiration Playground – an interactive, sensory-focused project planned for Downtown Park – is so important to the Ptacek family. This Saturday, Sept. 29, people from all walks of life will have the opportunity to learn more about the project, as part of the Play For All EXPO.

Sponsored by the Bellevue Rotary Club and the city of Bellevue, that have partnered to bring the plan to fruition, the event will take place at the park from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. The goal of the expo is to raise awareness of, and familiarity with, people with disabilities.

The event will also include a number of interactive “discovery” stations, music, entertainment and food vendors.

Improvements to the Downtown Park playground, which was last renovated in 2003, were already on the docket for the Parks Department before the Bellevue Rotary Club, currently headed by President Robert Rose, approached the city with the Inspiration Park proposal.

“It’s kind of Rotary’s legacy project for the community,” Ptacek said.

Ptacek, a former president of the Rotary club, says Bellevue’s Inspiration Park is expected to be a more elaborate version of similar projects in Renton and Woodinville.

Bellevue’s Rotary Club has a long standing tradition of funding projects all over the country, but the Inspiration Park project is something they wanted to keep local. He adds that partnering with the city – which has agreed to maintaining the park – makes this project especially unique.

Ptacek says the event on Saturday will be a great opportunity for people to experience a little bit of what life is like for somebody who has maybe a visual impairment or is confined to a wheelchair. Additionally, it will introduce the community to the concept for the Playground – a specialized playground for children of all abilities.

“The more that people with disabilities are part of the community, then I think, the better our community is going to be,” Bill Ptacek said.

In addition to private donations, the Rotary club plans to help pay for the project by funds raised from its annual auction. A member of Rotary International, the Bellevue club also plans to apply for national and international grants.

“Sara is one name,” said Sheila Pak, one of Sara’s caretakers. “But there are umpteen others like her.”

And like Ptacek, Pak sees the new playground as a great way to help Sara become an even more integral part of the community.