Cesar Chavez Day

For three consecutive years, from 2007 to 2009, KaBOOM! and CaliforniaVolunteers partnered to build great new places to play for children across the state of California. Communities in Delano, Fallbrook, Fullerton, Lemoore, Sacramento and San Bernardino built playgrounds all in one day on April 25. Each of the projects included a mural honoring the legacy of Cesar Chavez.

We also partnered together to build an intergenerational playground in San Francisco with First Lady Michelle Obama and California First Lady Maria Shriver on June 22, 2009. You can learn more about it here.

Here’s a look at what happened on April 25, 2009:

• 6 playgrounds built
• 1,800 volunteers participated in the builds
• 15,000 hours contributed to the projects by volunteers
• 45,000 children will use the playgrounds
• 120,000 pounds of concrete mixed by hand to build the playgrounds
• 291,600 square feet of safety surfacing incorporated in the playgrounds

The Cesar Chavez Day holiday was established in 2000 to honor the life and legacy of labor leader Cesar E. Chavez. CaliforniaVolunteers administers the Cesar Chavez Day of Service and Learning program, which includes the playground initiative, as well as the formation of after school service clubs for middle school students and curriculum development to integrate lessons regarding Chavez’s life into school day and after school activities.Chavez believed in ten core values: acceptance of all people, celebrating community, respect for life and the environment, non-violence, innovation, a preference to help the most needy, knowledge, sacrifice, service to others and determination.

In honor of Chavez's commitment to community building and service, communities are heavily involved in all aspects of the builds. Committees comprised of local children, teachers and parents organize volunteer recruitment, site preparation and safety/logistics for each of the builds. Planning for the playgrounds begins when children from each community meet with organizers from KaBOOM! and CaliforniaVolunteers to draw their dream play spaces. The children’s drawings are used to create the final playspace designs.

Children also participate in a series of lessons regarding Chavez's life that culminate the day of the build. To make sure that each playspace is a lasting monument to Chavez’s teachings, unique murals are painted at each site. Community volunteers also build picnic tables, benches, shade structures and take part in landscaping projects.