ZELIENOPLE — In lieu of receiving birthday presents, Zac Baker wanted to give a gift.

---- One that will keep on giving to numerous people — including himself — for years to come.

---- Baker used his 13th birthday party to accept donations toward the formation of an adult playground and workout park at Zelienople Community Park. He organized and put together the first Ultimate Zelie Challenge, an obstacle course and strength event, last year and raised $800 toward the project.

---- “I love American Ninja Warrior and testing my own strength,” Zac said. “I thought it’d be fun to develop a course that way and help this project along at the same time.”

---- The obstacle course will test the individual’s strength, speed, agility and balance.

---- “With his birthday coming up, I gave Zac the option of having a party and receiving presents or using his party to generate funding for the adult park,” Joella Baker, Zac’s mother, said. “He chose the latter.

---- “That park is very important to him.”

---- Roughly $1,600 has been raised through Baker’s birthday donations.

---- The adult playground will include challenging ways for adults to work out and improve their physical fitness, much like a child’s playground area does for kids.

---- “It wasn’t a hard decision for me,” Zac said. “I’m outgrowing the kids’ playground myself and an adult park will benefit me and so many other people for years.

---- “Why take a bunch of presents for myself when a project like this can give a long-standing present to everybody?”

---- The park director told Zac that $10,000 is needed to complete the adult playground.

---- “He said it would probably take three or four years to raise the money,” Zac said. “I don’t want to wait that long. I’m just trying to accelerate the process.”

---- The second Ultimate Zelie Challenge will take place Aug. 21 for kids and Aug. 27 for adults at Zelienople Community Park. Registration is at 1 p.m. with events beginning at 2 p.m.

---- Entry fee is $20.

---- “Zac has designed this course and organized the project pretty much on his own,” his mother said. “His father and I have been there for support, but this is his thing.”

---- Last year’s Ultimate Zelie Challenge attracted 85 competitors — youth and adult. It was held on one day. This year, the youth and adult events are being held on different days.

---- “There will be monkey bars, zip lines and various obstacles on the course,” Zac said. “Adults may have to carry around 15 to 20-pound weights as part of their course, which will obviously be more difficult.

---- “Some people will be eliminated along the way and the surviving group will do a rope climb at the end. We will have other competitions available for the eliminated people, so they will have things to do.”

---- Zac said he is hopeful this year’s Ultimate Zelie Challenge will raise between $1,200 and $1,500.

---- There will be age group awards for all of the events for kids and adults. Top finishers will receive trophies. Medals and ribbons will be presented to winners of other events.

---- Registration is available at www.getfitfamilies.com, by calling 724-321-4265 or emailing joella@zoominternet.net.