Each year, Life Floor's Make a SPLASH! Grant Contest honors aquatic spaces that are striving to create safer, more inclusive, and more inspiring environments for their communities. Through the Needs-Based and Inclusive Design award categories, we partner with organizations working to expand equitable access to water play, improve safety, and enrich the lives of children and families through thoughtful aquatic design.
Now in its sixth year, the Make a SPLASH! program continues to grow, thanks to the remarkable applicants who share their stories, their visions, and their dedication to creating impact. We are inspired by every submission and grateful to every community, nonprofit, and parks team working to make aquatic spaces safer for all. Today, we are proud to introduce the 2025 Make a SPLASH! Grant Winners.
JFK Park, City of Sanger (before Life Floor)
Needs-Based Grant Winner:
JFK Park Splash Pad, City of Sanger, California
A Vital Community Space Ready for Renewal
JFK Park is one of Sanger's most treasured neighborhood spaces, serving a diverse, working-class community in California's Central Valley. For nearly two decades, the splash pad at JFK Park has been the only facility of its kind in the city, offering one of the few free, safe ways for children to cool off during the region's extreme summer heat.
Despite its age and limited maintenance resources, this splash pad continues to draw families from throughout the surrounding neighborhoods. It remains a cherished landmark, loved for its simplicity, convenience, and sense of community connection. Yet its aging concrete surface and worn spray features now require significant upgrades to remain safe, vibrant, and welcoming.
Bridging the Gap for a Community That Deserves More
With median household income, per capita spending on parks, and capital funding well below state averages, the City of Sanger has long faced challenges in updating large-scale recreational amenities. Winning this grant helps bridge that gap, ensuring JFK Park can continue to serve as a joyful, equitable, and accessible space for generations to come.
The impact of this award is profound: enhanced safety, improved play value, and renewed pride for an entire community that relies on JFK Park as a central gathering place.
Rendering of The Els Center of Excellence Recreation Complex (before Life Floor)
Inclusive Design Award Winner:
The Els Center of Excellence Recreation Complex
Jupiter, Florida
A First-of-Its-Kind Recreation Complex Designed for Autism Inclusion
The Els Center of Excellence is developing a groundbreaking Specialized Autism Friendly Recreation Complex, scheduled to open in early 2027. This new campus, featuring a gymnasium, aquatic center, and now a dedicated splash pad, will provide a safe, empowering, and sensory-supportive environment for individuals of all ages with autism and developmental disabilities.
“To have your product on this project is an honor, really, and I know it’s going to make a huge difference for all of the people that we’re going to be serving. And it’s going to serve as a model for when we’re talking with other organizations that are trying to do an autism inclusive, autism friendly project that we’re going to be able to tell them about Life Floor and how it’s made such a difference for us.”
ASPECTSS™ Compliance: A Global Standard for Autism-Friendly Design
This project is on track to become the first Sports and Recreation Facility in the United States to be considered ASPECTSS™ Compliant, thanks to the collaboration with Magda Mostafa, creator of the world's leading architectural design framework for autism.
The ASPECTSS™ principles inform every detail: sensory zoning, navigation, compartmentalization, spatial sequencing, and transition elements. Each water feature selected for the splash pad fits within a carefully structured gradient, from low-immersion misting to more stimulating sprays, ensuring users can comfortably explore water at their own pace.
Congratulations to the 2025 Winners!
Both winning projects reflect the heart of the Make a SPLASH! Grant Program: expanding access to safe, inclusive, and inspiring aquatic play for communities who need it most. Life Floor is honored to partner with these organizations and celebrate the incredible work they are doing to uplift their communities.
Thank you to all who applied, shared their stories, and committed to improving aquatic safety and accessibility. Your passion continues to inspire us, and we look forward to seeing the impact these projects will have in the years ahead.
EXPLORE PAST MAKE A SPLASH! GRANT WINNERS:
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