Board accepts $500,000 pledge from NextEra Energy Foundation for inclusive playground

The School Board of Indian River County on Dec. 1 authorized a charitable contribution agreement with NextEra Energy Foundation, approving a $500,000 pledge distributed over five years to support an FPL-sponsored inclusive playground at the Jimmy Graves Sports and Community Complex.

The superintendent presented the agreement and invited NextEra Energy Foundation representative Michelle Murrow to speak. "We've been working on this gift since 2022. So happy to bring it home and really creating a safe place for all children to be able to play in an all inclusive playground here in Indian River County," Murrow said.

Janet Knupp, executive director for the Indian River Education Fund, thanked the board and recounted the community effort behind the project, saying the initiative began with persistence and partnership and emphasized play's benefits for children's cognitive and social development.

Board members moved and seconded the authorization and voted unanimously to approve the agreement. The motion was presented to the board as an authorization for a contribution agreement between "Next Era Energy Foundation, Inc." and the Indian River Education Fund in support of the district's FPL-sponsored playground project.

The board record shows no public speakers opposed; the superintendent said staff would proceed with the documented agreement and presentation materials attached to the agenda. The project was described in the meeting as an inclusive playground designed for broad community access at the Jimmy Graves Sports and Community Complex. The agenda materials referenced the charitable contribution agreement and related documentation for board review.

Next steps identified at the meeting included executing the formal agreement and coordinating signage and plaque recognition; the meeting record did not specify a construction timeline or capital budget source beyond the pledged contribution.