AKRON, Ohio — On Thursday, around 125 volunteers came out to Akron’s Morgan Park to construct a new playground for the community. The design for it came straight from the minds of the kids themselves.
The benefits of kids at play are as limitless as the imaginations they bring to the playground.
The kids from the Rich Kids Enrichment Program at South Street Ministries were invited to tap into those imaginations, with the promise of seeing their ideas come to life.
“Give kids a voice,” Education and Emotional Wellness Coordinator for the non-profit Riley Alchier. said. “Because I think as adults, we kind of always say ‘You’re a kid, you don’t know what you’re talking about.’ But we forget what that felt like when we were kids.”
Kaboom has been leading the charge to bring kid-designed playgrounds to communities across the country. Morgan Park had a playground already – of sorts. South Street Ministries Director of Community Engagement Shawn Bonner described it as half buried in mulch.
“It was detrimentally dilapidated, and it was more of a hazard than anything,” he said. "So after securing a grant from Kaboom the Akron Parks Collaborative asked kids to draw their dream playground. Turned out these kids dream big! The ideas they sketched out included a movie theater with free popcorn, a trampoline with a TV on it, every video game console that currently exists. And a big slide that does down into a slip-n-slide."
Grown-ups got to work tearing down the old “dilapidated” playground and prepping the area for something new. Something that came from the most imaginative place there is, the minds of children.
“When was the last time any adult has actually gone and played at a playground? We don’t know what kids want anymore. We need to hear from them,” Alchier said. "Because this park at the intersection of East and South Akron needed only the best form of inspiration."
“I’ve seen both communities bring bouncy houses, bring their own grills, bring what they think a park should have,” Bonner said. “So we’re putting that stuff into the park and we’re giving folks what they’re been longing for, for years.”
And these kids, needed some empowerment, with one excitedly declaring: “We’re bringing change to the community!”
Now, thanks to their creativity, and the willingness of a lot of adults to listen, everybody wins.
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