Community Goes KaBOOM! for New Fountain Valley Area Family Resource Center

FOUNTAIN VALLEY, CA — It started out as a dream for the Anaheim Indepencia Resource Center.

On Thursday, over 200 volunteers from Target, Community Action Partnership of Orange County (CAPOC), along with organizers from KaBOOM! and residents of the Anaheim community, have teamed up to build a new community playground at the Anaheim Independencia Family Resource Center.

In August, children from the neighborhood put crayons to paper to draw their dream playground.

The new play space includes the Wildwood Climber and an adventure bridge, and will bring more than 600 kids in Anaheim one step closer to having the childhood they deserve.

“Thanks to KaBOOM! and Target, neighborhood children and families now have more opportunities for exercise and activity at our Anaheim Independencia Family Resource Center,” said Dolores Barrett, Director of CAPOC’s Community Partnerships and Services Department. “Our strong ties to this community allow us to work with community leaders to address and change neighborhood issues. Today, with KaBOOM! and Target's help, we have made a change in the community that will have a strong and lasting impact. This new playground, where children gather to run and play together in a safe space, will also provide a fun way to enhance and support the Center’s healthy living programs that encourage kids to move more and eat healthy.”

As part of the construction, volunteers assembled the playground from start to finish in less than six hours. They mixed and poured thousands of pounds of concrete and moved enough safety surfacing to cover more than nine NBA-sized basketball courts.

Target supports KaBOOM! in promoting and protecting a child’s right to active play at home, at school and in the community. Partnering with KaBOOM! is part of Target’s ongoing efforts to help make wellness more affordable, accessible and inspirational for its team members, guests and communities. Through this partnership, more children will have the joyful childhood they deserve.

The playground will be open to the general public during the hours the Family Resource Center is open, including Monday-Friday normal business operating hours (8 am-5 pm) and occasionally in the evening and on the weekend for events.

To learn more about why #playmatters and why cities are embracing #playability, visit kaboom.org.

Photos, Courtesy Orange County Sheriff's Department