AUBURN HILLS, Mich., July 21 /PRNewswire/ -- More than 250 volunteers from the Chrysler Jeep(R) Superstores, Motor City Dodge Dealers, The Chrysler Foundation, the Sterling Heights Community Foundation, residents of the Sterling Heights community and organizers from KaBOOM! came together on Saturday, July 19, to build a new playground at Delia Park. The park is located in the city of Sterling Heights which was recently named among the top 100 cities that were named by Best Life magazine in 2008 as the "Best Places to Raise a Family."
Designed by local children, the playground replaces existing equipment at the park that was outdated, in need of replacement and unsuitable for children to play on. The ChryslerJeep Superstores and Motor City Dodge Dealers spearheaded the build effort that will provide 40,000 children annually with a new, safe place to play.
"Every child deserves the joy of play and friendship in their lives; and every family deserves the support that a strong community network provides," said Jim Schebil, president of the ChryslerJeep Superstores Advertising Association. "This project provides these things and more to the City of Sterling Heights and is directly in line with the Chrysler Jeep Superstores long history of strong hometown community involvement."
Planning for the playground began at a Design Day event held in May 2008. Local children and community leaders met with organizers from KaBOOM! and Chrysler to develop their "dream" playground. The children's drawings were used to create the final playground design.
"We are so excited to have this playground built at Delia Park with the help of KaBOOM!, ChryslerJeep Superstores and Motor City Dodge Dealers," said Sterling Heights Mayor Richard Notte. "A playground represents what a park is all about. This playground says that Delia Park is a park that welcomes vibrant, energetic children ready to play on equipment created especially for them."
The project is the seventh of 25 playgrounds scheduled to be built across the country this year by KaBOOM!, The Chrysler Foundation, Chrysler Financial and Chrysler, Jeep or Dodge dealerships. The playground is also one of more than 225 builds KaBOOM! will lead across the country in 2008, in an effort to provide an enjoyable place to play within walking distance of every child in America.
"The Motor City Dodge Dealers are excited to support an effort that puts our children and community first," said Motor City Dodge Dealers President Mark Snethkamp. "Our stores have been vital members of the communities they serve for decades, so we understand that bringing people together in a positive and fun way is the basic building block needed to create strong communities."
The Chrysler Foundation
The Chrysler Foundation is the primary source of charitable grants made by Chrysler LLC. The Foundation annually supports hundreds of charitable organizations with an emphasis on community growth and enrichment, arts and culture, education, and youth development programs throughout the United States and, increasingly, the world. The Foundation's Good Neighbor, Good Citizen(R) programs make a positive, lasting investment in local communities where our employees, customers and neighbors live. Visit www.thechryslerfoundation.com .
KaBOOM!
KaBOOM! is a national non-profit organization that envisions a great place to play within walking distance of every child in America. Since 1995, KaBOOM! has used its innovative community-build model to bring together business and community interests to construct more than 1,400 new playgrounds, skate parks, sports fields and ice rinks across North America. KaBOOM! also offers a variety of resources, including an online community, regional and national trainings, grants, publications and the KaBOOM! National Campaign for Play, which includes Playful City USA and the Playmaker Network -- a national network of individual advocates for play. Headquartered in Washington, D.C., KaBOOM! also has offices in Chicago and San Mateo, Calif. For more information, visit www.kaboom.org .