RED BANK, N.J.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Nov. 4, 2013--
A dream is now a reality for children in Red Bank as their drawings were
turned into a new playground on Saturday, November 2nd. In
less than eight hours, a play space was built at The Community YMCA’s
Family Health and Wellness Center with the help of more than 200
volunteers from The Community YMCA, Good Neighbor Pharmacy and
non-profit KaBOOM!. The new playground – which was made possible by
funds donated by Good Neighbor Pharmacy and matched by its parent
company, AmerisourceBergen – will serve hundreds of children in the
community for years to come.
“The Community YMCA is truly grateful to KaBOOM! and Good Neighbor
Pharmacy for their generosity and commitment to ensuring that all
children have a safe place to play,” said The Community YMCA President &
CEO Rhonda Anderson. “We thank them and the many hardworking volunteers
and local businesses who supported this project. Together, we are making
a lasting impact for children in our community.”
Planning for the playground began at a design day event held on
September 3, where local children and community leaders met with
organizers from KaBOOM! and Good Neighbor Pharmacy to design
their dream playground. The children's drawings were then used to create
the final playground design.
“Good Neighbor Pharmacyis thrilled to have the opportunity to
give back to local communities like Red Bank through our partnership
with KaBOOM!,” says AJ Caffentzis, Senior Vice President, Sales &
Marketing, at AmerisourceBergen Drug Corporation. “We are committed to
the health and well-being of our customers, employees and communities.
Our Good Neighbor Pharmacy members, in particular, remain
cornerstones of their respective communities, working to improve patient
access and patient health in local neighborhoods across the country. We
view our partnership with KaBOOM! as an extension of our commitment to
local communities.”
Thanks to the work of Good Neighbor Pharmacy, The Community YMCA
and KaBOOM!, children and their families now have a 2,400 square-foot
playground to call home that includes features such as a Rocky Ridge
Climber, Rumble Seat Slide and Swings.
The playground is the first of five that will be built together by
KaBOOM! and Good Neighbor Pharmacy. In 2013, KaBOOM! will
build more than 150 playgrounds across the country in an effort to
fulfill its vision of providing a great place to play within walking
distance of every child in America.
The Community YMCA
The Y is a leading nonprofit charity that strengthens communities
through youth development, healthy living and social responsibility. The
Community YMCA serves more than 20,000 residents in greater Monmouth
County through programs such as: preschool, before and after school
care, health and wellness, leadership, arts enrichment, personal and
family counseling and summer day camp. With a mission to serve all, more
than $650,000 in reduced and free membership fees and programs is
provided by the YCares financial assistance program to individuals and
families in need. For more information, visit TheCommunityYMCA.org.
Good Neighbor Pharmacy
Good Neighbor Pharmacy is a national network of more than 3,200
independent community pharmacies. Our mission is to provide communities
with options when it comes to their healthcare needs, along with the
personalized service, affordable products and care that only an
independent community pharmacy can delivery. Good Neighbor Pharmacy
is a program by AmerisourceBergen Corporation, one of the world’s
largest pharmaceutical companies. With over $80 billion in annualized
revenue, AmerisourceBergen is headquartered in Valley Forge, Pa., and
employs approximately 13,000 people. AmerisourceBergen is ranked #32 on
the Fortune 500 list. For more information, go to GoodNeighborPharmacy.com
and AmerisourceBergen.com.
KaBOOM!
KaBOOM! is the national non-profit dedicated to giving kids the
childhood they deserve by bringing play to those who need it most.
Children today spend less time playing outdoors than any previous
generation, a fact that is having disastrous consequences on their
health, achievement levels, and overall well-being. Social entrepreneur
Darell Hammond founded non-profit KaBOOM! in 1996 in Washington, D.C.
with a vision of creating a great place to play within walking distance
of every child in America because children need to play actively every
day at home, in school and in their communities. Since then, KaBOOM! has
mapped over 90,000 places to play, built more than 2,300 playgrounds,
and successfully advocated for play policies in hundreds of cities
across the country. KaBOOM! also provides communities with online tools
to self-organize and take action to support play on both a local and
national level. Hammond chronicles the founding of the organization and
the importance of the cause of play in his The New York Times
Best Seller KaBOOM!:
A Movement to Save Play, now out in paperback. The book
details how businesses and communities can work together to save play
for children across the country. All author proceeds support KaBOOM!.
Headquartered in Washington, D.C., KaBOOM! also has an office in San
Mateo, Calif. For more information, visit www.kaboom.org.
Source: AmerisourceBergen
The Community YMCA
Andrea Plaza, 732-671-5505, ext. 131
aplaza@cymca.org
or
AmerisourceBergen
John
Havrilla, 610-727-7000
jhavrilla@amerisourcebergen.com
or
KaBOOM!
Mike
Vietti, 785-320-2137
mvietti@kaboom.org