KaBOOM! Announces Scary Playgrounds: Let's Find 'Em and Fix 'Em Contest

Find the Scariest Playground in America and you could receive a $15,000 Grant to Fix It!

WASHINGTON, Oct. 3, 2011 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- We've all seen scary playgrounds – playgrounds where the equipment is outdated, broken and unsafe.  In the spirit of Halloween and to advance its mission of a great place to play within walking distance of every child in America, KaBOOM! announces the Scary Playgrounds: Let's Find 'Em & Fix 'Em contest, running from October 5-25, 2011. Winners will be announced Monday, October 31.

All contestants could receive $15,000 to help improve their scary playground by applying for a KaBOOM! grant. In addition to the grant opportunity for the communities, one Grand Prize Winner will receive a $2,000 VISA Gift Card for personal use. Second place wins a $1,000 VISA Gift Card. Third place gets a $500 VISA Gift Card, and seven runners-up will each be awarded $100 VISA Gift Cards. Entries must be received by 11:59 p.m. ET on Tuesday, October 25th to be eligible.

"While we encourage people to have fun with this contest, fixing scary playgrounds is serious business. The fact is that our children are playing less than any previous generation, and this lack of play is causing them profound harm. The rising numbers of children suffering from obesity, ADHD and depression are alarming," says Darell Hammond, Founder and CEO of KaBOOM!. "There is a wealth of data on the power of play and the difference that unstructured play can make on the health and well-being of a child, yet only one-in-five children live within walking distance of a park or playground. Not enough playspaces are being built and those that exist are often in disrepair."

To nominate a scary playground, contestants simply download the free Scary Playgrounds iPhone or Android app from www.kaboom.org/scary, submit their user name and password, then take a photo of the scary playground and add it to our Map of Play along with a brief description of what makes the playground scary. The more scary playgrounds a person adds to our map, the more chances each contestant has to win!  

With the help of parents, teachers, government officials and play advocates everywhere, KaBOOM! is creating a nationwide Map of Play to help parents find the best places to take their kids while also helping KaBOOM! identify those playspaces that need a little extra TLC, as well as play deserts where there are no playgrounds at all. By entering the Scary Playgrounds: Let's Find 'Em and Fix 'Em contest, contestants are helping KaBOOM! shore up our nation's play deficit while also having a little fun.

"Our goal is to make sure that every child in America has a great place to play," says Hammond. "Once we map the playspaces – including the good, the bad and the scary – we can be more strategic as to where we target our resources."

About KaBOOM!
KaBOOM! is the national non-profit dedicated to saving play. Children today spend less time playing outdoors than any previous generation, a fact that is having disastrous consequences on their health, achievement levels, and overall well-being. To fight this Play Deficit, social entrepreneur Darell Hammond founded non-profit KaBOOM! 15 years ago in Washington, D.C. with a vision of creating a great place to play within walking distance of every child in America. Since then, KaBOOM! has mapped over 85,000 places to play, built more than 2,000 playgrounds, and successfully advocated for play policies in hundreds of cities across the country. KaBOOM! also provides communities with online tools to self-organize and take action to support play on both a local and national level. Hammond chronicles the founding of the organization and the importance of the cause of play in his The New York Times Best Seller KaBOOM!: How One Man Built a Movement to Save Play. The book details how businesses and communities can work together to save play for children across the country. All author proceeds support KaBOOM!. For more information, visit www.kaboom.org.

SOURCE KaBOOM!