Foresters, KaBOOM! & Volunteers Build New Playground for Akron Children

Child-Designed Playground will Eventually Serve Nearly 1,500 Children and their Families

AKRON, OH, Aug. 14 /PRNewswire/ - Akron children received a brand new playground today at Stoner Hawkins Park thanks to the effort of more than 200 volunteers from Foresters(TM), the Westside Neighborhood Development Corporation (WENDCO), the City of Akron and non-profit KaBOOM! The new playground will serve nearly 1,500 children and their families in the Akron community for years to come.

"Foresters is more than a life insurance provider," said Michelle Culley, Member Coordinator with Foresters. "Foresters also invests in its members and in communities where they live, such as Akron. Foresters believes in creating opportunities for families to spend healthy time together, like the Stoner Hawkins Park playground we all built here together."

Foresters, a life insurance provider committed to the well-being of families, is funding 20 playground builds across North America in 2010. By investing $1.5 million in these projects, Foresters is partnering with KaBOOM! to build playgrounds that will eventually serve more than 250,000 children and their families.

"This new space will give the families in our neighborhood a wonderful place to connect and play," said Kim Brown, WENDCO Executive Director. "The positive energy generated from engaging the community to build this great new playground will impact our area for years to come."

The playground at Stoner Hawkins Park will provide nearly 1,500 children and their families in the Akron community with a great place to play. In less than eight hours, the child-designed playground was built from scratch by hundreds of volunteers from Foresters, WENDCO, the City of Akron and the surrounding community. In addition, children and families spent the day playing games and participating in arts and crafts activities. Playgrounds are an ideal place for families to get to know other families and build strong communities.

"I think we all enjoy seeing the results of our community's hard work and dedication, and this playground is a wonderful example," said Akron Mayor Donald L. Plusquellic. "This collaboration will have a lasting impact on the kids of this neighborhood."

Thanks to the work of Foresters, WENDCO, the City of Akron and KaBOOM!, children and their families now have a 2,800 square-foot playground to call home that includes features such as a Silo Climber, Swing Sets and a Triple Racer Slide.

About Westside Neighborhood Development Corporation

Located in the heart of West Akron, Ohio, the Westside Neighborhood Development Corporation (WENDCO) has provided housing rehabilitation and construction services for more than 20 years. Because, we believe that structural development is best supported long-term, by individual and community spirit revitalization; our Mission is to provide a comprehensive array of services designed to holistically improve our neighborhoods, and strengthen our community!

About City of Akron

With more than 200,000 people living within its 62 square miles, Akron is situated in Northeastern Ohio. Once known as the "Rubber Capital of the World", it was home to five Fortune 500 companies and the headquarters of the world's largest tire companies. Today, Akron has evolved into a city of Innovation in the polymer engineering, biomedical and advanced manufacturing fields. This All-America City is also the home of the University of Akron, Stan Hywet Hall and Garden, the finest example of Tudor Revival architecture in America, and the first breakfast cereal, Quaker Oats. The All-American Soap Box Derby, the Akron Symphony Orchestra and numerous MetroPark trails are treasured by its residents and make Akron a good place to live, work and play.

About KaBOOM!

Headquartered in Washington, D.C., KaBOOM! is a national non-profit organization dedicated to saving play. Through community building, the company is focused on giving every child in America a great place to play within walking distance. Since 1996, KaBOOM! has used its innovative community-build model to bring together business and community interests to construct more than 1,800 new playgrounds, skate parks, sports fields and ice rinks across North America. KaBOOM! also offers a variety of resources, including an online community, free online trainings, grants, publications and the KaBOOM! National Campaign for Play, which includes Playful City USA and Playmakers - a national network of individual advocates for play. KaBOOM! also has offices in Chicago and San Mateo, Calif. For more information, visit www.kaboom.org.

About Foresters

Founded in 1874 as a fraternal benefit society, Foresters(TM) 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 675,000 members in the United States, Canada and the United Kingdom. Unity Life of Canada(+) is a wholly owned subsidiary of Foresters. For more information, please visit www.foresters.com.

Foresters(TM) 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

SOURCE Foresters

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