Clark Horton, 3, smiled as he made music on the big colorful xylophone in Laurel Park in Conway.
“Can you hit the red one?” Leah Horton asked her son, as she held his 7-month-old sister, Clara. Next, Clark and his mother played the drums before he spun a wheel full of beads.
To them, it was just another fun activity to enjoy on a sunny, but chilly, winter day. To First Security Bank, the outdoor instruments are a memorial to a longtime employee and a gift to the community.
Phase I of the Jerry Cooper Sensory Play Trail includes three musical stations designed to be used by children with disabilities, as well as people of all ages.
Johnny Adams, president of First Security Bank Conway, which sponsored the trail, said Cooper was a bank courier for 20 years. Cooper, 70, of Morrilton, died in 2019.
Adams said Cooper, who had a special-needs son, James, volunteered on the boards of the Conway Human Development Center and Milestones Services Inc., formerly the Faulkner County Day School, in Conway.
Adams said Cooper had “a big heart” for developmentally delayed children.
“This was a way for us to remember him,” Adams said. “The idea actually came from our Searcy bank, who did one of those for their community, … and we said, ‘We need to do something in the city of Conway.’”
The city of Conway donated the space in Laurel Park and some of the paving work, Adams said. Donations came from bank customers who knew Cooper, and from employees, as well as many community partners.
“It’s been a great, great deal,” Adams said.
In addition to sponsoring the trail, First Security Bank donated $500 each to Cooper’s nonprofit volunteer organizations: Milestones Services Inc. and the Conway Human Development Center Volunteer Council, where he was a past president.
Teresa Little, executive director of Milestones Services Inc., worked with Cooper for almost 38 years, from the time he started bringing his then-2-year-old “severely disabled” son, James, to the preschool. The school serves both developmentally delayed and typically developing children in its program.
Little said Cooper first volunteered as chairman of the parent group and later served two terms on the school’s board of directors.
“He was always helping with our fundraising,” Little said. “You’d look up at whatever fundraising event, and there he’d be. He was one of our biggest cheerleaders in the community [for Milestones].
“Jerry’s son had many sensory issues, due to not being able to process those signals going to his brain, as someone that we consider typically developing would. A typically developing child can use many items that stimulate their senses, helping their brain to develop. Children with disabilities or delays may need extra help in this area. Having the trail where all children can learn and enhance development is a wonderful thing and one of which Jerry would be very proud,” she said.
Cooper’s widow and James’ stepmother, Joanie Cooper of Morrilton, said she and Jerry were married almost 14 years.
“He had a kind heart,” she said. “He was real softhearted and nice. He got along well with people, and he was a very intelligent man. He liked to prank around and joke, but he was intelligent as far as books and stuff.”
Joanie Cooper said James was “a sweet child,” despite his challenges.
“James was nonverbal and had to have constant care. That was one of the things that attracted me to Jerry, because I had a son the same age as James,” she said.
James died in 2009 at age 26. Her son, Sean Holbrook, is 38 and has a twin sister, Holly Holbrook.
Cooper said her late husband enjoyed working as a courier for the bank.
“Jerry loved his job. He loved the people he worked with, and they loved him,” she said.
Cooper said the play trail being named for Jerry was a nice surprise.
“I think it’s really neat. I think if people will take their children over there and let them play … especially if they have disabilities and can’t do the regular equipment, it could teach them some things,” Cooper said.
“Jerry would have loved it,” she said, adding that he played the piano. “He was constantly bringing in musical things for my granddaughter (Laiah, 6), trying to teach her how to play keyboard, and karaoke machines … trying to teach her notes.”
Cooper said she plans to take her granddaughter to the play trail when it is warmer, and Adams said his 14-month-old grandson has been to Laurel Park to play on the instruments.
Margaret Smith, the bank’s executive vice president of marketing, said two more phases are planned for a total of six to eight musical stations. The individual stations can cost anywhere from $3,000 to $50,000-plus.
“We’re hoping to raise $15,000 to $20,000 for each phase. This started as a three-year project, but with COVID-19 restrictions, our fundraising last year was quite restricted. We are hoping things open up this year and we can resume more of our fundraising projects,” she said.
Donations can be made out to First Security Bank Sensory Trail and mailed to First Security Bank, Attn: Margaret Smith, P.O. Box 938, Conway, AR 72033.