Leadership Fuquay Varina class to place communication boards in five town parks

A member of this year’s Leadership Fuquay Varina class told the town board Tuesday the cohort plans to install communication boards in the five most visited parks in Fuquay Varina to help people on the autism spectrum or with communication disabilities.

Jonathan Mendoza, speaking as a class representative, said the class selected the project after discussing town growth and the needs of changing demographics. “Communication boards are tools that can be put in place and used by those on the autism spectrum or have difficulty communicating or are nonverbal,” Mendoza said. He told the board donors and sponsors have supported the project and that the class plans to unveil a board at a community event; he asked the town to watch for the Chamber of Commerce or Downtown Association posts announcing the date.

Mendoza said the class’s mission is to strengthen public-private partnerships and civic engagement. He described the communication-board project as a community-service effort intended to make the town more accessible as its population grows. No formal town action was requested; the presentation was informational and the board received the project announcement.