Community Corner

200 Volunteers Build Playground for Preschoolers

Volunteers from Morgan Stanley, elsewhere complete project in just hours.

A group of volunteers from financial services firm Morgan Stanley and elsewhere recently pitched in to build a playground on Bergen Street—and wasted no time getting it done, either.

On June 28, about 200 people gathered at the Newark Preschool Council at Henrietta King to replace the aging playground equipment there. Also helping out were volunteers from the Bank of Tokyo as well as Newark residents. 

The playground was completed in just six hours. 

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The effort was directed by KaBOOM!, a national non-profit dedicated to

bringing play to deserving children.  Since its inception in 1996 it has

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built more than 2,200 playgrounds in cities across the country.

The new, 2,500-square-foot playground will be used by more than 100 local children from a Head Start program. The playground’s design was based partly on student drawings.

"Only one in five children live within walking distance of a park or playground," said Joan Steinberg, Global Head of Philanthropy for Morgan Stanley.  "Kids spend less time playing outside than any previous generation.  This is having profound consequences for kids physically, socially, and cognitively."


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