BUFFALO -- Despite Monday's chilly temperatures, officials cut the ribbon on a new playground at the Buffalo Hearing and Speech Center. Two years in the making, the playground is fitted with all the necessities for a kid including slides, ladders, even a climbing wall.

It's not all all about fun though. The playground has a dual purpose. It was designed by a group of therapists who not only wanted to put smiles on the kids faces but help them develop as well.

"Every feature here can be used as play and as a therapeutic venue," Buffalo Hearing and Speech Center President Joseph Cozzo said.

The playground will help the more than 200 children who attend the center with communication disorders.

Mary Jo Savinski's 4-year-old son Parker is deaf and it will help him in many ways, even if he doesn't know it.

"They just know it's fun to play on," Savinski said. "They don't know that's it's going to help them with sensory issues, physical issues, and occupational issues."

The playground will be used year round as part of the students' curriculum because officials at the center say learning starts with play.

"Play is what teaches them roles and different things about the world," Cozzo said. "They can use their imaginations. They can use all of their physical prowess at any given age. Play is essential."