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 That’s why we teamed up with KaBOOM! (a nonprofit dedicated to bringing play back into the lives of children) to provide much needed places to play for two deserving schools or organizations. Through the program we held in the fall of 2008, the school or organization collecting the most specially marked lids would win a $50,000 grant to build or improve a playspace. The winners would then get to choose a second $50,000 grant recipient from a list of KaBOOM! applicants chosen on the basis of financial need.
 Catherine Elliot, a freshman at Bates College, noticed the promotion on the lid of her Stonyfield yogurt at lunch. She did some research on local organizations and came across the Boys and Girls Club of Auburn/Lewiston.
It didn’t take much convincing to get Andie Hannon, the unit director of the clubhouse, on board. Andie was already working closely with the local police department to clean up community parks and playgrounds so area kids could have great places to play. But Andie’s clubhouse needed a little TLC of its own. The old gym floor was in bad shape and the paved side lot wasn’t fenced in and didn’t provide club members any green space. Andie knew the $50,000 grant could change all of that.
Catherine launched a campaign to collect all of the lids she could. She worked with Bates to post fliers and place lid collection boxes across campus. Boys and Girls Club members also got into the spirit. The team collected more than 4,500 lids to surpass almost 100 other teams to secure the grant to fix up the clubhouse.
After learning they’d won, Catherine and Andie were asked to help another community in need to get a second $50,000 grant from KaBOOM! and Stonyfield to build a playground. After reviewing a list of deserving communities, Catherine and Andie awarded the second prize to the PTA at Laurel Elementary School in Laurel, Maryland, which had been trying to raise money for a playground for over a year.
 Both the Boys and Girls Club of Auburn/Lewiston and the Laurel Elementary PTA are tracking their efforts to design and build their playspaces on connect.kaboom.org in hopes that their experiences will help other communities build playgrounds and playspaces for their children.
Need help planning a playspace project? KaBOOM! offers a free online do-it-yourself toolkit and trainings throughout the year across the country, covering topics including fundraising, community organizing, equipment selection, and more. Visit www.kaboom.org to learn more.
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