200+ Volunteers build KaBOOM! Playground at Springview Apartments

More than 220 volunteers from The CarMax Foundation, non-profit Star-C and the community gathered Thurs., Oct. 24, to in just six hours transform an empty site into a state-of-the-art playground at Springview Apartments in Southwest Atlanta (2786 Old Hapeville Road SW, Atlanta, GA 30354). The new playground will help make play the easy choice for kids and families in Springview and the adjacent Summerdale Apartments.

“Our organization addresses the intersection of affordable housing and education through afterschool programs, and we know that play is an essential part of kids’ well-rounded development,” says Audrea Rease, Executive Director of Star-C, “so we were elated to be chosen by KaBOOM! to receive a kid-designed playground, and to again have The CarMax Foundation step up as the corporate sponsor who made it happen.”

The day kicked off with Atlanta City Councilmember Andre Dickens presenting a proclamation naming Oct. 24 Star-C Day in Atlanta. Also on hand was the CEO and other executives from KaBOOM!, as well as local and national leaders from CarMax and the CarMax Foundation. The CarMax Foundation provided the majority of the funding for the playground through its national partnership with KaBOOM!, the national non-profit dedicated to giving all kids – especially those living in poverty – the childhood they deserve through great, safe places to play. An army of volunteers from CarMax and Star-C supporters completed the playground and other site amenities in just six hours.

On hand for the afternoon ribbon cutting, in addition to Rease and CarMax and KaBOOM! representatives, were Dr. Meria Carstarphen, Superintendent, Atlanta Public Schools; Dr. Anyeé D. Payne, Principal, Cleveland Avenue Elementary, Star-C’s partner school for this site; Atlanta City Councilmembers Joyce Sheperd and Matt Westmoreland; Fulton Superior Court Judge Eric Dunaway and Star-C Founder and Board Chair, Marjy Stagmeier.

“The ‘build’ day and ribbon cutting with all of the volunteers and VIPs was joyous enough, but we received one more fantastic surprise with a $10,000 donation from The CarMax Foundation,” says Marjy Stagmeier. “This community has undergone an amazing transformation over the past year, and partnerships like this one with CarMax and KaBOOM! have been key to the turnaround.”

The Springview-Summerdale community is a unique collaboration between the public, private and philanthropic sectors, with a holistic approach that provides residents with high-quality housing, as well as critically important wrap-around services including after-school, summer camp and wellness programs. The model is intended to lift up individual and family residents, as well as help build stronger communities that provide greater opportunities for all Atlantans.

“We are especially honored because this is our second playground build with KaBOOM! and CarMax,” Stagmeier says. “In May 2018, the organizations came together to build a playground at Willow Branch Apartments in Clarkston, another Star-C site.”

FURTHER INFO:

Star-C is a 501(c)(3) non-profit that bills itself as an education model with an affordable housing solution. Star-C improves educational outcomes by helping to reduce transiency in underserved areas by providing wraparound services to students and families in our partner affordable housing communities. Star-C holds a monthly breakfast so anyone can learn more about the organization, programs and outlook; see Monthly Breakfast information on its website: http://www.star-c.org. #starcprograms #kaboomplaygrounds #atlantapublicschools #clevelandavenueelementary

Springview (and the neighboring Summerdale Apartments) were purchased in Summer 2018 by TriStar, through its TriStar Community Impact Fund, with the support of Invest Atlanta and Atlanta Housing. The property received $1.5 million in funding from Invest Atlanta’s Housing Opportunity Bond program to renovate blighted units. The Atlanta Housing component is its HomeFlex Program.

The CarMax Foundation enriches the communities where our associates live and work. Together with CarMax, Inc., the Foundation has donated more than $60 million since 2003. Funding programs are made available through a portion of CarMax, Inc.’s pre-tax profits. CarMax, the nation’s largest retailer of used cars, revolutionized the automotive retail industry by driving integrity, honesty and transparency in every interaction. www.carmax.com. #carmaxcares

KaBOOM! inspires communities to make play the easy choice and works to drive the national discussion about the importance of PLAYces. KaBOOM! has collaborated with partners to build or improve more than 17,000 playspaces, engage over 1.5 million volunteers and serve nearly 10 million kids. To learn why play matters for all kids, visit kaboom.org. #playmatters #PLAYceforKids