When Casey Dobbins posted in the Yelm and Surrounding Areas Facebook group asking if anyone would be interested in seeing a park for remote control cars in town, he didn’t expect to see hundreds of people sharing their passion for the hobby in the comments.
Because of the sheer volume of comments, the Yelm resident felt inclined to try to make the RC park a reality.
Dobbins is working with several community members, most of whom he met through Facebook, to create a track area behind the ball fields at Longmire Park.
“It was honestly pretty overwhelming. In fact, it’s kind of heartwarming knowing that your hobby is shared by so many others and then seeing that in our kids,” Dobbins said.
But Dobbins’ love of RC vehicles and will to pour time and resources into the park is deeper than a Facebook inquiry.
Growing up, he fantasized about flying RC planes but “it was always outside of the price range,” he said. Dobbins shared a love of RC vehicles with his brother Mark, and he was reintroduced to the hobby in 2016 shortly after his brother passed away.
“He and I always had a thing about RC, so it brings me back to him and keeps his memory alive,” he said. “I’d like to think he’d be proud of me, but that guy was a wild card. He had a strong sense of morality, and I have a very strong sense that he’d be pretty proud of what I’m doing.”
Once Dobbins had the idea to work on the RC park, he reached out to Yelm Mayor Joe DePinto to express his interest. But Dobbins said DePinto “shot me down” and told him that there’s no place to put an RC park.
Later, Yelm City Councilor Joshua Crossman contacted Dobbins to see what his vision was for the park, and Dobbins responded that he wanted to create something “by the community, for the community” and something to bring people together.
Dobbins received permission from Yelm Public Works Director Cody Colt and the city to start his work on the RC park, which began about a year ago. He received donations for boulders and gravel for a stairway from community members, and he hopes to work with the city to create a 40-by-40 foot pavilion with a built-in barbecue pit and access to power and water.
Dobbins said there aren’t many RC parks on the West Coast that are available for community members 24/7. One of his primary goals for the project is to give children and disabled people an outlet to express and share their passion and meet new people. Dobbins eventually wants to create a racing league for kids, as well.
“A lot of RC enthusiasts come from a disabled background. I know a lot of people that have severe disabilities to where they can’t walk or are paralyzed, and this is their outlet,” he said. “This is how they entertain themselves because it’s something that they can do. Another reason why I’m doing this is because if we can give our kids something to do, then they won’t be out doing graffiti or doing drugs behind the high school. We’ll have a safe place for them to come and enjoy themselves and run amok out here and not have to worry.”
Dobbins described the project as one where the work will never be done. He is looking for more donations for materials and more hands to move them. He met with about a dozen people in the rain Sunday, Feb. 23, and all but one of them contacted him through his Facebook post.
“It’s been slow because it’s just been me and my wife and kids, but if I can get more people out here to help, then it gets done quicker and it’ll open up quicker,” Dobbins said.
For more information, join the public Yelm RC Park Facebook group.
