Photo courtesy of KaBoom!
Children in 14 Cities will Benefit
Morgan Stanley today announced the creation of 14 new play spaces for children through a Morgan Stanley Foundation grant to KaBOOM! and the hands-on efforts of hundreds of its employees throughout the U.S. this year. With our partners and volunteers, we will be building two physical playgrounds in Boston and Atlanta and providing creative play grants in 12 cities to provide local nonprofits an Imagination Playground or Rigamajig, which allow for year-round activity in areas with limited space or inclement weather.
Launching in Indianapolis, IN; San Diego, CA; Pittsburgh, PA; Dallas, TX; Salt Lake City, UT; and Miami, FL, unstructured, child-directed play has proven to help kids develop physically, emotionally, socially and intellectually, yet today’s kids have less time and fewer opportunities to play than any previous generation. For more than 50 years, the Morgan Stanley Foundation has supported healthy starts and solid educations for the children in our communities. Safe places to play are vital to that foundation and the Morgan Stanley Foundation remains committed to delivering essential services, giving children in neighborhoods in need a chance to grow, learn and excel.
"We are excited to have the opportunity to continue to work with KaBOOM! and all of our amazing local partners who prioritize the power of play and further their impact in the community,” said Joan Steinberg, President Morgan Stanley Foundation. "Thanks to the collaboration between our nonprofit partners and Morgan Stanley volunteers, we are able to bring thousands of children around the United States one step closer to the play-filled childhood they deserve.”
Morgan Stanley has a long-standing partnership with KaBOOM!, the national nonprofit dedicated to bringing play into the daily lives of all children. Over the course of the partnership, Morgan Stanley employees and KaBOOM! have built 18 playgrounds, serving more than 9,000 kids. The creative play grants are an expansion of the commitment that Morgan Stanley and KaBOOM! have made to bringing play to kids everywhere with play systems that provide unique, engaging play opportunities for kids when access to traditional outdoor play spaces is limited or unavailable.
Imagination PlaygroundTM is an innovative play system that encourages creativity, communication and collaboration in play. With a collection of custom-designed, oversized blue foam shapes, Imagination Playground provides a changing array of elements that allow kids to create a playspace that is constantly built and re-built by their imagination.
An interactive set of wooden planks, wheels, and pulleys, Rigamajig allows children to develop language, communication, and problem-solving skills that are key to cognitive development and STEM learning.