The milestone community-driven playground build was a celebration of KaBOOM!'s achievement of providing 8.5 million kids with the childhood they deserve through great, safe places to play. MSE Foundation donated $10,000 to help fund the build.
MSE Foundation and the Capitals have built four playgrounds with KaBOOM!. In 2011 the Capitals partnered to build a Capitals-themed playground at Associates for Renewal in Education in Washington, D.C., and in 2012 built a playground with the Alexandria Redevelopment and Housing Authority at Hopkins-Tancil Court in Alexandria, Va. MSE Foundation funded its first Capitals-, Mystics- and Wizards-themed KaBOOM! playground at Eagle Academy Public Charter School in 2013 and at Imagine Lincoln Public Charter School in 2014.
The new playground at THEARC will bring more than 36,500 kids east of the Anacostia River one step closer to having the play-filled childhood they deserve.
During the week, communities across the country joined KaBOOM! by celebrating their own PLAYce for Kids through events and social media campaigns, symbolizing the renewed commitment nationwide to providing all kids with more opportunities to get the play they need to grow up healthy, resilient and ready for life.
The first KaBOOM! playground was built in Washington, D.C., 22 years ago. Since then, KaBOOM! has engaged more than one million volunteers and thousands of community and funding partners who have played a vital role in the achievement of this milestone.
KaBOOM!
KaBOOM! is the national nonprofit dedicated to giving all kids - particularly those growing up in poverty in America - the childhood they deserve filled with balanced and active play, so they can thrive. Since 1996, KaBOOM! has collaborated with partners to build, open or improve more than 16,700 playgrounds; engaged more than one million volunteers; and served 8.5 million kids. KaBOOM! creates great places to play, inspires communities to promote and support play and works to drive the national discussion about the importance of play in fostering healthy and productive lives.
THEARC
The Town Hall Education Arts Recreation Campus (THEARC) is a project of Building Bridges Across the River, a nonprofit organization. THEARC is a $60 million, 200,000 square-foot campus located near the neighborhoods of Congress Heights and Parklands. Since 2005, THEARC has provided children and adults living east of the Anacostia River access to high-quality yet low-cost or free programs and services in the fields of education, music, art, dance, health and social services. THEARC is home to the largest theater east of the Anacostia River, THEARC Theater, and a two-acre urban farm known as THEARC Farm.
