Correspondent photos / Sean Barron .... St. Nick prepares to meet sisters Ensley Sweeney, 4, left, and Adley Sweeney, 2, at the annual Breakfast with Santa fundraiser Sunday morning at Waypoint 4180, as their father, David Sweeney, looks on. Proceeds will benefit the Rowan Sweeney Memorial Foundation to build an all-inclusive playground in honor of Sweeney’s late son, who was shot to death four years ago in Struthers. He was 4.

CANFIELD — Perhaps the most significant and meaningful Christmas gift for David Sweeney this year is seeing the fulfillment of part of his late son’s legacy moving closer to fruition.

“It’s grown, and it’s been amazing,” Sweeney, of Canfield, said.

He was referring to the annual Breakfast with Santa fundraiser Sunday morning at Waypoint 4180, 4180 Westford Place.

Sponsoring the holiday-themed and family-friendly event were Beeghly Oaks Center for Rehabilitation & Healing, Oasis Center for Rehabilitation and Healing, and Park Center Healthcare Rehabilitation.

Proceeds will benefit the nonprofit Rowan Sweeney Memorial Foundation, of which Sweeney serves as president. The foundation’s primary goal is to better the community in the name of Rowan, who was shot to death during a home-invasion robbery early Sept. 21, 2020, at a Struthers home. He was 4.

Brandon Crump, Kimonie Bryant and Andre McCoy are serving lengthy prison sentences for their roles in the crime.

In an ongoing effort to reach its fundraising goal, the foundation has generated more than $135,000 toward creating Rowan’s Memorial Park and building an all-inclusive playground for people of all ages and abilities to also reflect his son’s love of playgrounds and parks. The project is estimated at $700,000, David Sweeney noted.

In addition to bringing the community closer together, the goal of Sunday’s gathering was to bring in $3,000 to $5,000 toward the playground project, he said, adding that the specialized equipment likely would be similar to that installed at The Walnut Grove in Canfield.

Sweeney expressed gratitude for having received a $5,000 grant from the Mahoning Valley Community Foundation and added that he has applied for nearly 20 grants during the last two years, and continues to do so.

“We’re working hard to raise the money to reach our goal,” he said.

Sweeney added that those who wish to see how the funds are being used can go to www.guidestar.org.

Those who attended Sunday’s gathering and are personally touched by Rowan’s legacy include Patty Murphy of Austintown, who brought her son, Frank Mikitaw III, 9, and daughter, Charlotte Murphy, 2.

“Frankie was born the same year as Rowan, so we’ve gone to many events” related to Rowan, Murphy said, adding, “This event is near and dear to helping Rowan’s dad get the playground.”

In addition, Murphy sees part of Rowan reflected in her son, she continued.

Murphy, with Sweeney acting as a liaison, also is hoping to help pass Logan’s Law, named after Logan Taylor, 14, who was accidentally shot to death Nov. 11, 2023. Masiahs Gentry, 14, a classmate, was found culpable in Taylor’s death and sentenced to mandatory time in juvenile prison on the reckless homicide charge that included a three-year gun specification mandated by Ohio law.

Calling the amount of youth gun violence “astounding,” Murphy said her main goal is to work toward reforming the juvenile justice system and ensuring that, on a case-by-case basis, consequences for a young person would be more consistently proportional to the crime committed.

Also, the Taylor case is personal for Murphy because the teen was her children’s stepbrother, she added.

In addition, Murphy wanted to help Sweeney as he continues to work toward healing from the tragedy of his son’s violent death. To that end, she expressed gratitude for events such as Sunday’s Breakfast with Santa as a means to also spread more love.

“Rowan is one of those people we’ll never forget,” she said.

The breakfast also featured a variety of arts and crafts for children and adults, along with a basket raffle.