Garfield Group Holiday 2009:
The Norris Square Project
"I can’t thank you enough for creating a wonderful, new space for our children. I hope others will be inspired and do the same for other organizations."
— Arlene Lopez, Education Coordinator, Norris Square Civic Association
Transforming a playground. Transforming lives.
Partnering with Greater Philadelphia Cares, we transformed a plain, uninspired indoor playground into a space where kids can laugh, play, and dream.
Challenge:
Given the harsh economic climate of 2009, Garfield Group wanted to focus our holiday “gift” on helping to heal the world. Something creative that would inspire our team and our community. Fortunately, we were able to partner with Greater Philadelphia Cares (GPC) who introduced us to an indoor playground at the Norris Square Civic Association (NSCA) in the Kensington section of Philadelphia that was in desperate need of a makeover.
Results:
Our team developed a “town square” concept — a mini city where kids could explore their world. We also developed a blog to chronicle the transformation of the playground from start to finish, and an outreach program to drum up support for Greater Philadelphia Cares, Boston Cares, and The Norris Square Civic Association itself. Then, on December 18th, the big day arrived. Bright murals and educational toys transformed a drab room into a special place where kids can laugh, dream, and learn — and even inspired the National Head Start Association to make a matching donation of $29,000.