Put your seatbelts on, folks, and get ready to ride the webinar train! Destination: KNOWLEDGE.

All you need to participate in these webinars are a phone and a computer connected to the Internet. These trainings are offered free of charge.

FUNdraising 101
Fri., Sept. 5, 2008 (3:00-4:00 p.m. EST)

Play and Children’s Health: The Value of Playgrounds
Mon., Sept. 15, 2008 (3:30-4:30 p.m. EST)
Guest speaker: J.C. Boushh, founder of Design for Play
[Read an article J.C. wrote for KaBOOM!]

Almost There! Getting Ready for Your Build Day!
Tue., Sept. 16, 2008 (2:30- 3:30 p.m. EST)

An Introduction to the Community Build Road Map
Thu., Sept. 25, 2008 (2:00-3:00 p.m. EST)

Becoming a KaBOOM! Community Partner
Thu., Oct. 23, 2008 (2:00-3:00 p.m. EST)

To register, visit our webinars page.

This just in...the New York WE Play! feature an exciting roundtable discussion on “The State of Play in New York City” featuring:

• Margery Franklin (Former Director, Child Development Institute, Professor Emerita, Sarah Lawrence College)
• Ed Miller (Founding Partner, Director, U.S. Alliance for Childhood, NYC Play Coalition)
• Nancy Barthold (Assistant Commissioner, NYC Parks & Recreation)
• Karen Lee (Deputy Director, Chronic Disease Prevention and Control, NYC Health Department)
• Mary Alice Lee (Director, NYC Playground Program, Trust for Public Land)

The session will include brief presentations by each panel member, followed by an audience-driven question and answer session.

Get started on the path toward building a great playground today! Learn more and register here.

We've got WE Play! Yes we do!
We've got WE Play! How 'bout you?

KaBOOM! is holding four - count 'em - FOUR playground training events in August all around the country.

Denver, Colo. - Aug. 6
Cleveland, Ohio - Aug. 7*
New York City, N.Y. - Aug. 13
Atlanta, Ga. - Aug. 21*

They're free to attend, thanks to the generous support of KOOL-AID and The Home Depot. But you need to register in advance. [Learn more and register]

* At each of the Cleveland, and Atlanta WE Play! trainings, five attendees will receive $7,500 grants (sponsored by KOOL-AID) toward building a playground in their community!

Don't miss out! We've just posted more new webinars! All you need is a phone and an Internet connection to participate. Register today!

Revitalizing Playspaces, Becoming Part of the Urban Parks Movement
Wed., July 2

Safety, Surfacing, and Vendors…Oh My!
Wed., July 16

How to Plan a Play Day
Thurs., July 17

And don't forget these other great, upcoming webinars:

Becoming a KaBOOM! Community Partner
Mon., June 30

Making the Ask: Getting Business Sponsorships
Wed., July 30

EXTRA! EXTRA! Read All About It! Working with the Media during Your Playground Project
Fri., Aug. 1

Grant Writing 101
Mon., Aug. 19

With more than half of the world’s population now living in cities, urban parks and green spaces have a more important role than ever.  Parks connect people to nature, provide spaces for relaxation and recreation, and strengthen both the body and the spirit.  The 2008 International Urban Parks Conference, scheduled for September 21-23 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, will explore this valuable connection. Body and Soul: Parks and the Health of Great Cities will bring together leading-edge research experts, public officials, and management innovators to help shape the future of our cities.
 
Over 90 speakers will provide practical information on issues from managing parks sustainably to forming partnerships that promote active living through park usage.  Keynote addresses from Teresa Heinz, Luis Garden Acosta, and Richard Louv focus on making connections between people, parks, and the environment as a whole. 

Many conference sessions directly address the need to establish parks as centers for healthy, active living.  Topics include “One Step at a Time: Promoting Physical Activity in the Park,” “No One Left Inside: Lifting Barriers to Park Access for All,” and “Re-Discovering Our Neighbors and Our Community in City Parks.”

In addition to the wide variety of conference sessions, attendees can participate in a number of pre-conference tours, including visits to Frank Lloyd Wright’s Fallingwater and bike and kayak tours of Pittsburgh.  Tours of Pittsburgh’s downtown and riverfront will highlight the city’s near-miraculous transformation from “Smoky City” to America’s Most Livable City.  Mobile workshops in Pittsburgh’s parks will present in-depth case studies that showcase a wide range of innovative restoration and development initiatives.  And the Body and Soul Exhibit Hall will feature the parks-related products and services of nearly 50 organizations.

Body and Soul is a presentation of City Parks Alliance and the National Association for Olmsted Parks and is a production of the Pittsburgh Parks Conservancy.  The complete schedule, speaker information, and registration are available at www.urbanparks08.org.

At select upcoming WE Play! events sponsored by KOOL-AID, five attendees will receive $7,500 grants toward building a playground in their community! These grants are available at the following events:

• Houston (July 10)
• Cleveland (Aug. 7)
• Atlanta (Aug. 21)

Learn more and register here.

Nonprofit playground builders hosting seminar in New Orleans
By Chad Ruiz
St. Tammany (La.) News
June 9, 2008

KaBOOM!, playground builder extraordinaire which recently held a build in Lacombe, is hosting a free seminar at the Marriott Convention Center in New Orleans to offer insight to community members on successfully building playgrounds.

Located at 859 Convention Center Blvd., the function is part of KaBOOM!’s We Play! series that provides instructional seminars throughout the U.S. to give community members guidance on proven methods for building playgrounds.

“Anyone who has an interest in building a playground, whether it’s for your kids or a park, is welcome,” Mike Vietti with KaBOOM! said. [More]

Learn more about -- and register for -- a WE Play! near you!

There's nothing quite like a Workshop Entirely on Play (WE Play!).

Now you can experience the fun by checking out photos from the first three events:

Washington, D.C. | Charlotte, N.C. | Chicago, Ill.

But more WE Play! events are coming to a city near you! Check the list below and sign up today! 

Not all of the training hotel locations have been identified. You can still register for a training and we will update you as soon as we have the event address.

* = At each of the Los Angeles, Houston, Cleveland, and Atlanta WE Play! trainings, five attendees will receive $7,500 grants toward building a playground in their community! [More]

Do the kids in your community need great places to play? If your answer is YES, then sign up for one of our FREE Workshops Entirely on Play (WE Play!).

At select WE Play! events sponsored by KOOL-AID, (Atlanta, Los Angeles, Houston and Cleveland), applications will be available for five $7,500 grants toward building a playground in their community! Only WE Play! attendees are eligible to apply.

At WE Play!, you’ll learn how to plan, fund, and complete a community-build playground project AND advocate for more play in your community.

With the generous support of our partners KOOL-AID and The Home Depot, we've got FREE trainings scheduled across the country including Charlotte (May 13), Chicago (May 16) Los Angeles (June 5), Houston (July 10) and New Orleans (July 25) in the coming months. Get started on the path toward building a great playground today!

Learn how to fundraise, build and advocate for great places to play in your community! Led by KaBOOM! presenters, KaBOOM! Workshops Entirely on Play are one-day, FREE regional trainings packed with interactive sessions, networking opportunities and first-hand success stories. From planning a playground project to involving your local government in the cause of play, WE Play! sessions give all participants the tools to take action.

This year, two workshop tracks will be available: one for playground builders and one for play advocates. The playground builders workshop sessions will focus on the nuts and bolts of the community-build process, from volunteer recruitment to fundraising. Play advocacy sessions will focus on specific ways you can advocate for play in your community, from auditing the safety and maintenance of playspaces in your area to making your city a Playful City USA.

Designed for parents, PTA leaders, teachers, community leaders, business professionals, parks and recreation departments, school districts, and individuals who want to make play a priority for their community, WE Play! will be coming to Washington, D.C.; Boston, Mass.; Los Angeles, Calif.; Chicago, Ill.; Houston, Texas; Cleveland, Ohio; New Orleans, La.; Denver, Colo.; Atlanta, Ga.; New York, N.Y.; Phoenix, Ariz.; and San Francisco, Calif. in 2008.

Most WE Play!s also allow participants to take part in a KaBOOM! playground Build Day the day following, where they can witness how 150 volunteers can transform an empty lot into a dream playground in six hours!

Learn more about WE Play!

Our online training sessions, a.k.a. “webinars,” are the latest, greatest way to get information on planning, funding, and building playgrounds.  Even superman would be amazed.  You just need a computer (with Internet) and a phone.  The next three webinars are:

• The KaBOOM! Road Map: An Introduction to Planning a Playground Project, Making the Ask: Getting Business Sponsorship for Your Playground Project, and Grantwriting 101. 

Click here to learn more and register.

Short for web-based seminar, a webinar is an online presentation or seminar with interactive elements -- the ability to give, receive and discuss information. In a webinar, each participant sits at his or her own computer and is connected to other participants via the Internet. The presenter speaks over a standard telephone line, pointing out information being presented on screen, and the audience can respond over their own telephones or over an online chat box.

The last one we had was so much fun for everyone that we just couldn't wait to do another one.

The next KaBOOM! webinar is:

The KaBOOM! Road Map: A Guide to Planning a Great Playground Project
When: Nov. 7, 3p.m. EST
Duration: 60 minutes

For the full list of upcoming webinars, look here.

Playworld Systems, Inc.

Playworld Systems is a leading producer of high-quality commercial playground equipment and park and site amenities.  They are also the official KaBOOM! Partner in Play for playground equipment.  Playworld Systems and their national team of playground consultants are committed to children's safety and community-built efforts.  To learn more about Playworld Systems, stop by their exhibit and visit Ron Derk and Brett Barrick, or visit the web at www.playworldsystems.com.

BCI Burke

Founded in 1920, Burke  is a manufacturer of commercial park, playground, & recreational equipment.  Burke has become a recognized leader in playground safety by offering a wide variety of safety tools.  Burke's equipment carries a very competitive warranty within the industry, and they take pride in shipping 97% of orders complete, correct and on-time.  Visit Burke on the web at www.bciburke.com.

GameTime

Since 1929, GameTime has been committed to Enriching Childhood Through Play - firmly establishing them as a global leader in commercial play.  GameTime produces a robust selection of creative and traditional play systems and takes a research-based approach to play by funding independent research studies to discover children’s skill sets at target stages of development, then designing equipment to encourage those skills.  GameTime products are developed to educate, challenge, stimulate and entertain.  Visit GameTime on the web at www.gametime.com.

Landscape Structures

Landscape Structures Inc. designs and manufactures premier playground and skatepark equipment with a goal to delight and challenge kids of all ages. Landscape Structures’ proprietary packing methods mean everything arrives on time, is clearly marked, and has easy-to-follow instructions. With outstanding service and personalized design, they’ve got everything needed to create the perfect playground or skatepark.  Visit Landscape Structures on the web at www.playlsi.com.

Safety Surfacing Vendor Exhibit:

Garick Corporation