Rain, heat don't deter volunteers building Englewood playground

Children in Englewood were excited Thursday when a new playground took shape in their neighborhood with the help of volunteers.Morgan Stanley employees and workers with the national nonprofit Kaboom spent the day putting together the play space at the Mitzi Freidheim Child & Family Center at 1701 W. 63rd St. After spending hours building playground equipment, volunteers aimed to unveil the play area by the end of the day.Kaboom creates safe places to play to promote happy and healthy kids. It works with organizations such as Brightpoint, a statewide child welfare provider that operates the Freidheim center.The Englewood play space is the result of Kaboom’s effort to end play space inequity. “The construction of this new playground is a welcome new asset to our Mitzi community. We are excited the next generation of children in Englewood will have a space to build a safe and meaningful place to laugh, run and play, as well as a sense of joy that can only come from the innocence of childhood,” said Mike Shaver, Brightpoint president and chief executive. Kiana, 28, a Kaboom volunteer from Oakland, California, helps build an Englewood playground.Peyton Reich/Sun-TimesMore than 100 Morgan Stanley employees signed up to participate, and despite the rain and heat, the mood was upbeat as the building progressed. Workers put together spring riders, slides, picnic tables, a stage and a chalkboard play area. Morgan Stanley employee Illiana Levy, 52, who lives in Ukrainian Village, shared her excitement in helping make the playground a reality as a first-time volunteer. “We hear about the need for the South Side, and everyone is always looking for ways to give back. We had over 100 people sign up to want to make a difference.”The collaboration with Kaboom is part of Morgan Stanley’s commitment to give children a healthy start in life. Jill Zahara, 47, who lives in Beverly, said this time of year is her favorite for volunteering and helping out with her Morgan Stanley colleagues.More than 100 volunteers signed up for the build project from Morgan Stanley. They were joined by workers from Kaboom! They built spring riders, slides, picnic tables and a stage and chalkboard play area. Peyton Reich/Sun-Times“Being able to wave to the kids and seeing the excitement on their faces has been just amazing. My dad was a Chicago fireman in this neighborhood, so this community is near and dear to my heart growing up. Being able to see that the kids will have a place to come and play — there’s nothing to describe that,” Zahara said.The overcast weather and threat of rain did not deter progress building the playground.Tony Juozapavich, 59, lives in Wheaton but grew up on the Southwest Side. He said the rain was a welcome relief from the heat.“It wasn’t too bad. In the beginning, we had rain that cools us down, and we had some shade and cloud cover, then we got hot. All in all, we got so many people, it wasn’t too bad at all,” he said.Olivia Russell, 49, a longtime Englewood resident, runs the Mitzi Freidheim center. She had strong feelings about being a community resident who was instrumental in making the playground a reality and watching the volunteers do their work. “I’m able to give back to my community, give back to the children in my community together to give them something to smile about every day,” she said.