Reprinted from The Decatur Daily.

On a brisk fall day, Gary and Patty Cosby stood in the middle of a garden - a garden dedicated to the memory of their son Reece Marshall Cosby.

Reece, who lived with Down Syndrome, died Sept. 27, 2009. He was two years old.

On Oct. 24, Make a Difference Day, family, friends and Decatur Daily employees joined Gary and Patty to create the Reece Cosby Memorial Garden. The Decatur Daily funded and organized the project.

While the Daily financed the project, the garden was a community effort with local businesses offering discounts and the Special Needs Accessible Playground providing the land.

Family, friends and coworkers joined Gary and Patty to create the Reece Cosby Memorial Garden next to the Special Needs Accessible Playground on Oct. 24, Make a Difference Day.

The garden, filled with flowers, benches, plants and a statue of a boy angel sits next to the SNAP playground dedicated to John Mark Stallings, son of former University of Alabama Head Coach Gene Stallings. John Mark died in 2008 at the age of 46. He also lived with Down Syndrome.

The playground allows the 1,700 children in Morgan County living with disabilities, once restricted by regular equipment, to play. While the playground provides excitement, the garden is a sanctuary, creating a place of relaxation for not only the children and their families, but also the entire community.

The Daily wanted to organize this project as a tribute to Reece's influential life. Occasionally, Gary, a Daily photographer, would bring Reece to the office. Even in the newsroom, typically buzzing with the hottest stories and scandals, Reece provided a calmness and innocence.