What a Community Build Looks Like

One of the money saving endeavors we plan to put in place for the playground project is to host a community build.  The video below shows what a build looks like.  

Hundreds of volunteers, divided into teams, with specific assignments, working together all day.... and then, piece by piece, the playground starts to come together.  Friendships are made or strengthened, pride and ownership in the community and playground is instilled, and a playground is built.

It.Is.Awesome.

Thank You!

We don't say thank you often enough to those people who serve on the playground committee and donate large amounts of time to pull fundraising goals together.  Thank you for sharing in the same dream as the Friends of Pheasantbrook!

May your Thanksgiving Day be filled with Peace, Joy, Family and Laughter!

P.S. Start the laughter now by reading about one person's great Thanksgiving Day prank here.

How can a park be more than a place to play?

I recently read a short story on KaBOOM!'s website about a community completing their playground project that held one simple, important truth! You can read the story here, but here are just a few highlights.

It was a father of 3 little girls who spear-headed this project in Arizona.  For many who are already involved in the playground committee and various fundraising plans, this quote is very easy to relate to. We are motivated by our children and our grandchildren, we have desires to give them a safe and creative place to play:

"My three little girls were my biggest motivation and inspiration. They can spend all day long at a park playing and having fun - but it's not just that, they are exploring, pretending, socializing, leaning new things about themselves when they have the space and quality equipment to engage in unstructured play."

But, here's the part I would hope motivates us all to get involved in our own playground project, it is one major reason I am motivated to make our playgrounds better:

"For me, more than anything, a good park means more quality time together for families and friends. We are all losing too much of our lives fixated on a TV, computer or cell phone screen - unengaged with our loved ones and the world around us."

What are your reasons for supporting the playground project?  If you don't support it, why not?  We want to know. We want to be successful.  And we can't be successful without your full support!

Leave us a comment or send an email to phoafriends (at) gmail (dot) com.

What Kids Want in a Playground, the last of the series

Here we are, the last of this series of posts showcasing our children's designs of what "the-best-playground-ever" would look like.  

By  now we've all noticed a few trends (slides to swings to climbing and spinning).  Even if we are done with posts on the designs from our children, that doesn't mean the discussion has stopped.  

Keep talking to us about what you want to see.  Nothing's final until the build day, be a part of this exciting process!

The first 3 pictures are Baige's design.  I had to take a picture of it because she created her design in 3-D.  I love the work she put into it and scanning, as you will see, simply takes away from how awesome it is.

Oh scanning...I had to scan the design in two parts, and it's just not as cool.

Page 2 of scanning, but at least you get the close up of the toys she's selected.

 Here is another design by one of our kids.  This one also extends beyond the 8.5x11 paper that was made available.  There are no limits for these children, I love how they can dream big!  It's very inspiring.

I scanned her images too, but this picture is so much better than the two-part scan.

 Last but no least, if you would like to receive a copy of the equipment catalog from our vendor, BigTReceration, send us an email right away!  We would really like to know what you think is important to include in our new parks.

phoafriends (at) gmail (dot) com

The "Together We Can" Hand Mural

You've heard us talking about this for a long time now, but perhaps we should officially introduce to you our

"Together We Can" Hand Mural. 

This is not an exact replica of what we plan to build, but it puts across the idea of what our hand mural will be.

Mark your calendars for Saturday, May 5th, 2012. This will be our Community Build Day when we will gather residents, neighbors, friends and family together to help us build our new playgrounds.  In addition, we will also be creating a special work of art to honor the many wonderful people who have donated to our project.

All persons making a $20 donation will receive a reserved spot on our wall where to leave their mark in the Pheasantbrook community. In addition to making a hand print, each donor will also be able to leave their name, or the name of a loved one whom they choose to honor in making this donation.

There it is, simple as that: 

Make a Contribution (on the donate link above)       and Forever Leave Your Mark!

Officially a Non-Profit!

We've alluded to this already, but...

BIG NEWS!!!

We have received non-profit status with the IRS.  Do you know what this means?  All donations are now tax deductible!  That's big time!  

So make your tax deductible donation now by clicking on the 'donate now' link found on the top right, or by contributing to someone's team for the $10 Challenge, which is the 2nd to top link also on the right.

What Kids Want in a Playground, part 3

Here we are again, another Friday, which means more playground designs- inspiration from the children of our community.

We'd love to hear your thoughts on the toys our children are selecting.  Please leave us a comment if your noticing trends or your own "must have" toys!

As always, we have extra catalogues from BigTRecreation if you would like to create your own dream playspace.  In fact we welcome it! Email us at phoafriends (at) gmail (dot) com to found out how you can get a copy of your own catalogue!

The $10 Challenge...it's on!

We are proud to announce the latest in fundraising efforts

The $10 Challenge! 

It's pretty simple really. All you need to do is create a team of 10 people and have each person raise $10 from 10 people by December 15, 2011. (If we had 15 teams, we'd match our grant!)

Suggested Steps:
1. Gather a team of 10 enthusiastic people willing to be on your team (we suggest you talk to friends, family, neighbors and coworkers)

2. Give yourself a motivating team name (My team's name: Kids n Play!).

3. Ask each member of your team to raise $10 from 10 people by December 15, 2011.

4. Decide if you want to create a team fundraising page to collect online donations. Click here to get step by step directions on how to create your own fundraising page with StayClassy.org.   A Friends of Pheasantbrook fundraising page is especially helpful when people want to donate using a credit card and it's a great way for family and friends who live out of town to donate conveniently, safely and securely. You'll also be able to share your page easy with your Facebook friends and followers on Twitter.

A few incentives you can offer:
1. We have acheived nonprofit status, so all donations are tax deductible!
2. Any donation of $20 or more will receive a space on our "Together We Can" hand mural, to be created at our Community Build Day, scheduled for Saturday, May 5th, 2012. That's one way to leave your mark!

So...what are you waiting for!  Follow these instructions and set-up your team now!

What Kids Want in a Playground, part 2

We are back again with more playground designs created by the children in our community.

Are you noticing any trends yet? Are you finding toys that are a "must have" for you?  Let us know in the comments section!

And of course, if you are interested in creating your own playground designs, we do have extra catalogues from BigTRecreation.  Email us at phoafriends (at) gmail (dot) come to find out how to get a copy.

Swings = Happiness