In Neligh’s Riverside Park, a kaleidoscopic array of playground equipment serves as a monument to a sister’s love and underscores the community’s sense of shared responsibility and compassion.
Every time Ashley Caballero-Lazaro, 19, gazes at the inclusive playground she helped create, the memories return as a vivid cascade. The park has served as a focal point in her life since she was 14 years old, when she undertook a fundraising project to build something to benefit everyone in her community, no matter their ability. Looking back, she feels a sense of profound gratitude and accomplishment.
Back then, she felt a bit different.
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"I was so scared," she said. "I didn’t think I would get many funds because I was a freshman in high school. How many people are actually going to take me seriously, you know?"
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Overriding that fear, however, was her overwhelming love for her younger brother, Anthony. Born with a rare genetic disorder that impacts his mobility and neurological development, he found himself in a world often built with accessibility as an afterthought. Ashley observed these barriers and began pondering an important question: what if we made a place that was accessible to everyone, regardless of ability?
Or, more plainly: what if we made a place where my brother can play with his friends?
Turns out a lot of people wanted to help her answer that question. With the full support of her family, Ashley launched the Double-A Project (for Anthony Anderson, her brother’s full name) in hopes of raising enough money to install an accessible swing in the park. She started small, launching a coin drive and placing donation buckets in school and at local businesses.
Ashley didn’t know what to expect, but she had faith her community would find the generosity to fill at least one bucket. She was more than right about that. During halftime of a high school basketball game, she spoke to the crowd and explained the Double-A Project. While she talked, the elementary school student council, all friends of Anthony’s, paraded up and down the bleachers collecting donations. They were asking for whatever change people might have in their pockets.
"I think the biggest confirmation that I was doing the right thing was when I saw my first hundred-dollar bill in a donation bucket," she said. "I was, like, ‘oh my God.’ I actually ended up finding six of those."
In that one evening, the student council collected $658. It was the first success of many.
Through her high school years, Ashley and an ever-growing company of supporters hosted numerous fundraisers, sold hand-printed T-shirts, and all the while continued filling those coin buckets. By 2024, the Double-A Project had raised enough money to install the swing and two other pieces of equipment. By 2025, the project had raised $250,000 thanks in large part to efforts by Neligh City Clerk Dana Klebenes, who helped with applying for grants along the way. That same year, Ashley won Connecting Young Nebraskans’ Diversity & Inclusion Award.
"Ashley has shown remarkable initiative by planning, organizing, and managing a series of highly successful fundraising events," wrote Neligh Economic Development Director Lauren Sheridan in her nomination packet. "She personally met with local businesses to secure donations, recruited volunteers, helped prepare food, and oversaw event logistics from start to finish. Her efforts to provide an inclusive environment have not only raised significant funds but also brought the community together around a shared purpose."
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The Double-A Project took Ashley into new parts of Neligh’s civic life.
When she and her mother left Lima, Peru, Ashley was a young child. They arrived in the U.S. and learned together how to build a new life in a place much different than what they were used to. They could never have predicted that a small town in Nebraska would be the place where they felt the most welcomed and valued. They found that they could be part of Greater Nebraska’s vibrant community, but that did not mean that everything would be easy.
Never before had Ashley worked alongside city employees and officials on something of such magnitude. Nor had she spoken to bleachers full of her neighbors, asking them to consider supporting her dream. Not to mention the annual feeds of all varieties (tacos, spaghetti, pulled pork), occasional silent auction, and online crowdfunding campaign. She was not alone, however, and one connection offered her the perfect entry point. Anthony’s physical therapist knew the Park Board and was able to get the Double-A Project on a meeting agenda.
The idea resonated, particularly because the city had already been considering adding an inclusive playground to the park for some time. Ashley’s enthusiasm, creativity and persistence provided the jolt of energy needed to jump-start the project and bring it closer to reality. What she discovered as the project went on was that most of the community was right beside her. She witnessed the strength of relationships in Neligh and how those bonds created a network of supporters and cheerleaders for the project.
"It’s incredible to see," she said. "It made me more passionate and dedicated to keep going."
The Neligh Area Community Fund, an affiliated fund of Nebraska Community Foundation, is among the organizations that supported the playground project. This summer, Ashley served as the fund’s Hometown Intern. Her Double-A experience was ideal preparation for the internship, which encourages young Nebraskans to uncover their own strengths while they discover their community’s hidden assets. Her work on the playground project gave her a glimpse into those strengths, particularly those of her neighbors.
"I really learned the best ideas with the most heart come directly from community members," she said. "We live here, so we see what we can do to keep Neligh growing."
Nebraska Community Foundation’s Hometown Internships empower young Nebraskans to become real changemakers in the places that raised them. The experience is informed by asset-based community development, a framework that encourages people to look at their hometowns through a lens of abundance. Instead of looking for what is missing, interns are encouraged to uncover the many assets their community already possesses. Interns are given one directive: discover what you love about your hometown and find your own way to make a meaningful impact.
Lauren, who is also a member of the Neligh Area Community Fund Advisory Committee, is Ashley’s champion for the summer, a role that allows her to co-create with Ashley and cheer her on as she pursues her passions. To Lauren, Ashley’s leadership and ingenuity is an inspiration. Knowing what the college sophomore is capable of, she feels no need to micromanage.
"I just turned her loose," Lauren said. "It’s humbling."
Ashley appreciated the freedom.
"The fact that the interns are able to do what we think is best for our community is amazing," she said. "What Neligh needs is not what Diller needs or what Lincoln needs or anything else. Having it be open ended, it feels like the sky’s the limit. You can do anything, and it’s right in front of you."
Ashley still has big ideas for her community. She dreams of transforming a currently vacant lot downtown into a hub for community events, from farmers markets to outdoor concerts to simply a place where residents of all ages can stop and enjoy each other’s company on a lazy afternoon.
"It is a placemaking initiative designed to transform an underutilized space into a welcoming community gathering place," Ashley said. "This has involved creating concept designs, researching costs, building partnerships, presenting the project to local organizations, and working with community leaders to move the vision forward."
She is also working to honor the area’s Indigenous history, particularly the legacy of White Buffalo Girl. Many members of the Ponca Tribe, a third of the population, died after the U.S. government forcibly removed the tribe from the area in the late 1870s. Among those lost was a one-year-old girl buried in Neligh’s cemetery. Not knowing whether they would ever be able to visit the grave again, her parents entrusted the community with caring for her grave. Neligh residents have honored that request.
Next year will mark 150 years since White Buffalo Girl’s interment. Ashley is part of an effort by the Antelope County Museum Board to create a mural honoring her story.
"Working alongside local organizations, Ponca members and honorary members to create projects that will have a lasting impact has been one of the most rewarding parts of my internship," Ashley said.
The last five years have been instrumental in helping Ashley discover that her potential to create positive change in Neligh is functionally unlimited. That it all began with an act of love makes it all the more meaningful.
Sitting in the shade cast by Riverside Park’s many trees, Ashley smiles as she thumbs through a scrapbook documenting her Double-A journey. Hand-crafted by her mother, the tome is a treasure trove of news clippings, fundraiser fliers and pictures. As she leafs through the book, she pauses on a page of photos of her brother smiling in the sun while enjoying that rainbow of playground equipment.
