Foresters and community partners volunteer to build new Halifax playground
Foresters and community partners volunteer to build new Halifax playground
Providing more than 7,500 children a safe accessible environment for 15 years
Halifax, NS — June 17, 2009 – École John W. MacLeod Fleming Tower School in Purcell's Cove, a suburb of Halifax, has a brand new playground today thanks to a coordinated effort of 275 volunteers from ForestersTM and the community who erected the facility. Designed so children with special needs can play alongside their peers, this unique playground will serve the Halifax districts of Purcell's Cove – Armdale and Spryfield – Herring Cove. Halifax Mayor Peter Kelly joined George Mohacsi, President and CEO, Foresters, in acknowledging the tremendous contribution made by all the volunteers.
"This playground build is an excellent example of Foresters mission coming to life by providing a place where children and their parents can spend quality time together playing, learning and having fun," said George Mohacsi. "Foresters champions the well-being of families by investing in the communities where our members live and providing opportunities for our members to make a difference."
Foresters, a member-based life insurance provider with members throughout Nova Scotia, funded and organized the playground build with KaBOOM!, local parents and the Halifax Regional Municipality.
"We are pleased that volunteer organizations such as Foresters and KaBOOM! take an active role in our community and are willing to invest in infrastructure that will improve the quality of life for the children in HRM." said Mayor Kelly.
Before the first hole was dug in the ground, students at École John W. MacLeod Fleming Tower School helped design the playground of their dreams. Elements of the children's designs, including its accessibility features for children with special needs, were included in the plan for the new playground.
"This has been such an exciting project for the school to participate in. Our students took real ownership when designing the playground and they're thrilled to see it become a reality," said Lynn Douglas, Principal, École John W. MacLeod Fleming Tower School. "I'd like to thank Foresters, KaBOOM! the students, parents, staff, fundraising partners and the hundreds of volunteers that made today possible."
The new playground will be nearly 3,000 square feet in size and includes a rocky ridge climber, spiral climber, arch swing set, adventure tube, spiral ladder, a slither slide and much more. With a duration expectancy range from 15 to 20 years, the playground has the capacity to serve approximately 7,500 children in its lifetime.
Foresters investment in this playground extends beyond the work completed on build day. Foresters volunteers and the school community have made a commitment to maintain the playground to ensure it is available for subsequent generations of parents and children.
About École John W. MacLeod Fleming Tower School
École John W. MacLeod-Fleming Tower is an elementary school with two sites and about 330 students in English and French Immersion programs from Primary to Grade 6. Students attend many different after-school programs including music, dance, science and sports. The school is open every night for youth and adult athletic programs. Community involvement is very strong with many young families choosing the neighbourhood because of the reputation of the school and the friendliness of the neighbouring community. The new playground at the John W. MacLeod site will provide an interactive, safe and accessible play space not only for the students at the school but also for about 500 children and their families who access community recreation facilities in Districts 17 and 18 of HRM.
About 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 1,500 new playgrounds, skateparks, 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, DC, KaBOOM! also has offices in Chicago, IL and San Mateo, CA. For more information, visit www.kaboom.org.
About Foresters
Founded in 1874 as a fraternal benefit society, ForestersTM champions the well-being of families through quality life insurance, unique member benefits and inspiring community activities. Foresters shares its financial strength with more than 650,000 members in the United States, Canada and the United Kingdom. Unity Life of Canada†, a wholly owned subsidiary of Foresters, represents Foresters in Canada. Foresters is celebrating its 135th anniversary in 2009. For more information, please visit www.foresters.com.
ForestersTM is a trademark of The Independent Order of Foresters, a fraternal benefit society, Toronto, Canada M3C 1T9.
†Unity Life of Canada, a Foresters company, is a wholly owned subsidiary of The Independent Order of Foresters
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Last Modified:
June 19, 2009
406248 CAN (06/09)
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