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Playground Designed To Honor Schaffhausen Sisters

MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) - This Friday will mark one year since a horrifying crime that rocked one Wisconsin community.

Last year, Aaron Schaffhausen murdered his three daughters in their River Falls home.

Amara was 11, Sophie was eight and their youngest sister Cecilia was five years old.

Schaffhausen's sentencing hearing is set for a week from Monday.

To honor the girls' memory, their mother, Jessica Schaffhausen, is trying to do something positive for the community.

She wants to raise $500,000 for what will be called the "Tri-Angels Playground."

The play area will feature three different sections, tailored to children that are her daughters' ages and accessible to children with disabilities.

Two local high school students, Samantha Jensen and Hannah Bellrichard, have stepped in to help raise money.

"To see something, something positive come forward and for Jessica to have something to look forward to, to not really think about how they died but rather how they lived - she said that a lot of time - and that's so powerful for her to see it like that now," Jensen said.

There will be a 5K fun run on Saturday, July 20. It costs $30 if you pre-register and $35 dollars on race day.

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