ROCHESTER, N.Y. — During the summer, many families escape to Ontario Beach Park to enjoy all of its scenery.

“Walking the pier, looking at the water, looking at the ducks and stuff is just really relaxing," said one visitor.

While many people enjoy their fun in the sun, for others, just getting to the beach can be the most rewarding part.

“I can like go on the sand closer to the water,” Giana Bisnett said.

Giana is 14-years-old and has suffered from a condition that limits her mobility to a motorized wheelchair.

“She has spina bifida, she was born with it in utero, and basically it means there is a split in the spinal collum,” her father Rob Bisnett said.

The family had to learn to adapt to her disability. 

“She has really no feeling or sensation from her mid-line down, from her chest down,” Rob said.

But in recent days, the beach has installed an ADA-accessible mat making it convenient for people like Giana to have easier access. 

“We’ve gone down to the beach before we’ve only been able to do like the pier or the boardwalk or stay in the parking lot,” Rob said.

The new mat has allowed Giana to get to the water, even closer than she has ever been before.

“Just seeing through her eyes the look of wonder and excitement as she walks the dog down,” Rob said.

Despite Giana’s disability, the mat has provided a pathway of mobility, access and lifelong memories.