Over 200 volunteers turned out to make this one day building project a success The exciting event to build a state-of-the-art 3,000- square foot playground in just one day kicked off with a rally on Tuesday, Oct. 13, at the historic West Broad YMCA, 1110 May St. The playground is funded through a $61,000 grant from The Home Depot Foundation, and a $7,500 contribution from the City of Savannah. The event is organized by the nonprofit organization KaBOOM!, which envisions a great place to play within walking distance of every child in America. It's a goal also shared by the Healthy Savannah 2012 initiative, organized by Mayor Otis Johnson.

Founded in 1947, the West Broad Street YMCA was formed to serve Blacks in then legally segregated Savannah. While this is no longer its purpose, the West Broad Street YMCA is located between two Housing Authority Neighborhoods, and it continues to serve by building strong kids, strong families, and a strong community. This playground, which will be open to the public, provides enrichment for the Y's educational pro- grams as well as a safe and fun place for kids in the neighborhood to play.

As a founding partner of KaBOOM!, The Home Depot provides financial support, materials and numerous volunteers for play space projects across North America as part of its ongoing commitment to give back to the communities its storserve. In 2009, The Home Depot became the official Sustainability Partner of KaBOOM!. Both organizations will work together to make sure each playground project is as environmentally friendly as possible as well as educate children and communities about this important issue.

For this project, all materials will be recycled and any unused materials remaining after the completion of the build will be donated to other organizations. In addition, volunteers plan to plant several gardens surrounding the playground.