SOLON, Ohio — After their four-year-old son Sebastian died Monday from a rare genetic disorder, Kip Botirius and his wife, Kelly Baylog, started raising money for a new playground in Solon to honor their son.
"There were things he wanted to do when he got better and one of them was visit all these playgrounds," Kip Botirius said. "He loved playgrounds."
"This felt like something we could do to make sure his name lived on," Baylog said.
In a span of less than 24 hours, that fundraiser collected more than $70,000.
According to the family, Sebastian died Monday after a long battle with a rare genetic disorder known as LRBA deficiency, which stands for lipopolysaccharide-responsive and beige-like anchor protein.
"We lost him due to complications from a bone marrow transplant," his father added.
The family said the playground idea is still new to them, but they hope it can be inclusive to all children, including areas for bigger and little children, as well as shaded areas.
"Sebastian in the end couldn’t go out in the sun," his father said.
News 5 spoke with the Solon Recreation Director, who confirmed the city is working with the family to create a new playground.
It's not clear at this time where the new structure would be located, whether or not it would replace the existing playground at Solon's Community Center which was built in 2006, or what the timeline would be behind any potential project.
"This is part of our way to move on and make the world, a better place, and Sebastian's legacy live on and it’s what he would've wanted," Kip Botirius said. "He would’ve made the world a better place and now he’s going to."
To donate and help raise money for the new playground, click here.
