• The City of Bridgeport in West Virginia and Friends of Bridgeport Recreation set out to bring an inclusive playground for people of all abilities to their community.
• MPLX – Gathering and Processing East Region donated $25,000 to help support the project.
• The inclusive playground is part of a larger project that includes a musical play area, fitness area and multi-purpose sports fields near the sports complex in Bridgeport.

The community of Bridgeport, West Virginia, is one step closer to building a brand-new inclusive playground that will make outdoor fun accessible for people of all abilities. In July, the MPLX – Gathering and Processing East Region giving committee gave a $25,000 grant to the City of Bridgeport and Friends of Bridgeport Recreation to support the new project.

“We are committed to making our communities stronger, safer and thriving places to live, work and play,” said Tina Rush, Community Relations Representative at MPLX. “A project like this is going to make it easier for people of all abilities to have fun with their families and friends in our community. It will bring people together.”

MPLX Engineering Manager Dustin Vincent, who lives in Bridgeport, has volunteered as a baseball coach for the Bridgeport Challenger League. The league was started 20 years ago for children with special needs who wanted to play baseball. There are now eight teams, a total of 96 players, that compete during the season.

Vincent helped create the Friends of Bridgeport Recreation nonprofit organization to bring another accessible space to the area.

“There’s a need in our community. The increase in participation during baseball season shows we need a playground to use all year,” said Vincent. “We are excited to see this project getting close to the goal. It means a lot to work for a company that provides this type of support for the communities where we live and work.”

The inclusive playground is part of a larger project that includes a musical play area, fitness area and multi-purpose sports fields near the sports complex in Bridgeport. MPLX will be featured as a Champion of Play for its support of the project.

“The City of Bridgeport and the Friends of Bridgeport Recreation Inc. are very excited and appreciative of the recent donation from MPLX,” said Joe Shuttleworth, Director of Bridgeport Parks and Recreation. “This generous donation fostered by MPLX employees here in West Virginia shows the dedication of the employees and MPLX to give to our community. This donation will go a long way to help provide a truly inclusive experience for children in our area facing unique physical and mental challenges. The ability to play, have fun and enjoy life will be much easier for these children because of this donation.”

MPLX operates four facilities in the northcentral West Virginia region.