Neighborhood
Amway, City of Grand Rapids, Creston neighborhood Association and KaBoom saving play by building new playground in just one day for children
Contact: see pitch for 4 contacts
Pitch:
CONTACT: Nardy Bickel, Amway, 616-787-7565, [email protected]
Jay Steffen, Director of Parks and Recreation, 456-4234, [email protected]
Mac Brown, Creston, 616-454-7900, [email protected]
Mike Vietti, KaBOOM!, 785-320-2137, [email protected]
DESIGNED BY KIDS, BUILT BY VOLUNTEERS:
AMWAY, CITY OF GRAND RAPIDS, CRESTON NEIGHBORHOOD
ASSOCIATION AND KaBOOM! SAVING PLAY BY BUILDING NEW
PLAYGROUND IN JUST ONE DAY FOR CHILDREN
WHAT: More than 200 volunteers from Amway, the City of Grand Rapids and the Creston Neighborhood Association,
organizers from KaBOOM! and residents of the local community will join forces on Friday, May 13 to build a new
playground at Briggs Park. The new playground’s design is based on drawings created by children who
participated in a Design Day event in March.
WHY: Today’s kids spend less time playing outside than any previous generation in part because only 1-in-5 children
live within walking distance of a park or playground. This Play Deficit is having profound consequences for kids
physically as well as mentally and socially. Children desperately need a place to play every day in order to be
active and healthy. KaBOOM! is a national non-profit organization dedicated to saving play. For 15 years,
KaBOOM! has been fighting the Play Deficit and saving play by ensuring there is a great place to play within
walking distance of every child.
The new playground will provide more than 6,000 children in the local community with a safe place to play.
Currently, the children who play at Briggs Park only have old, out-dated equipment to enjoy, which will be
removed and replaced by a modern playground.
The playground is the 12th built by KaBOOM! and Amway and the eighth in the Grand Rapids area in an effort
to fight the Play Deficit and save play. The project is one of more than 200 playground builds KaBOOM! will lead
across the country in 2011 in an effort to provide a great place to play within walking distance of every child in
America.
WHEN: Friday, May 13
9:30 a.m. to 10:00 a.m. Kick off ceremony and volunteer deployment
Noon to 2:00 p.m. Best viewing of playground construction
2:00 p.m. to 3:30 p.m. Final construction phase and adjustments
3:30 p.m. to 4:00 p.m. Ribbon-cutting ceremony to dedicate new play area
(Note: all times approximate)
WHERE: Briggs Park
324 Knapp St.NE
Grand Rapids, MI 49505
WHO: Michigan 76
th
District State Representative Roy Schmidt;
Grand Rapids Ward 2 City Commissioner Rosalynn Bliss;
Grand Rapids Ward 2 City Commissioner Ruth Kelly;
Kent County District 14 Commissioner Carol Hennessy;
Hundreds of volunteers from the community
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