TOLEDO—A unique playground that combines exercise with good nutrition was recently dedicated behind the Padua Center on the former site of Toledo St. Anthony School.

Staff members have dubbed it an "edible, play-able fitness ground" in anticipation of the vegetables, fruits and other greens they plan on cultivating around the jungle gym and walking path. Children participating in programs at the center can also help care for a small flock of free range chickens that live there in a coop built by Toledo GROWS, one of the organizations that helped make the "fitness ground" a reality.

Deonna Turner, a second-grader at Imani Learning Academy, plays on the new "fitness ground" behind the Padua Center in Toledo. (Chronicle photo by Laurie Stevens Bertke)

Toledo GROWS, a community gardening outreach program, and ONYX Community Development Corporation donated playground equipment they purchased with a grant from Fifth Third Bank. Jeff Moritz of Landscape Designs prepared a design, provided soil and grass for the area, and St. John’s Jesuit senior Andrew Gaillardetz organized a crew of volunteers to install the equipment and distribute the mulch for his Eagle Scout project.

The project also received financial support from St. John’s Jesuit High School, St. John’s Jesuit community and other private donors.

Tiffin Franciscan Sister Virgina Welsh, director of the Padua Center, says the space reflects the center’s emphasis on reconnecting children and other city residents with the environment.

Chickens are tremendous recyclers of food," she notes.

Children participating in summer camps and after-school programming there learn to reduce their landfill contributions by sharing table scraps with the chickens and composting organic garbage — from leftover chips and salsa to coffee grounds — in a "worm box."

The Padua Center is a membership-based organization that offers free programming and resources to the surrounding neighborhood. Started by the Diocese of Toledo in the rectory of the former St. Anthony Church two years ago, it is now sponsored by Toledo St. Martin de Porres and supported by volunteers and donations from churches, schools, organizations and individuals.

A free after-school program hosted Monday through Thursday provides tutoring and other activities for students from area public, private and charter elementary schools.

Educational coordinator Alicia Smith feels her job is to make learning fun. "I put the fire into education," says Mrs. Smith, a former school principal and teacher who joined the Padua Center staff in June.

As a lifelong resident of the neighborhood around St. Anthony, she says she was drawn to the Padua Center by the positive response of her children when they attended a Bible study class there. "If you want to reach a community, you reach them through their children," says Mrs. Smith.

She believes the center combines quality outreach and ministry with love and concern for the community.

This fall the Padua Center is introducing Vision Therapy for children with the help of Dr. Jeffrey Schmakel, and developing an alternative to suspension program called Padua Possibilities in partnership with nearby Pickett School. The program will provide academic assistance and counseling and express the importance of staying in school.

"We’re trying to respond to the needs that we see, and we’re trying to build programs that respond to real needs," explains Sr. Welsh, who also serves as pastoral leader of St. Martin de Porres.