117. Miles Mack / McAlpin Playground

I really like Miles Mack Playground for lots of reasons. I see it from the train when I’m coming home from Harrisburg, and it’s a sign that I’m almost home. There’s a bunch of new equipment, plus several pieces of retro steel equipment, including an amazing old spaceship monkey bars. Zora’s feeling a lot braver these days that she has in the past. She didn’t used to go on the tall monkey bars, but when I saw her scamper up those monkey bars recently, it made me feel, well, like I was getting older. I felt older thinking about the recent history of this playground. Zora wasn’t born yet when, in September 2008, Miles Mack, a dedicated mentor, peacemaker, and coach, was gunned down after a basketball tournament that he had organized.