Community Relations - KaBoom!

Video from event in Queens, NY in 2007

JetBlue celebrates our partnership with KaBOOM!, a national nonprofit organization that envisions a great place to play within walking distance of every child in America. KaBOOM! empowers communities to build playgrounds by leading builds, sharing know-how and tools and rallying local leaders to take action on behalf of play. During the last two years, over 600 JetBlue crewmembers came together to build playgrounds in Orlando, Florida; Newark, NJ; Woburn, MA; Long Beach, CA; Queens, NY and we plan to build more this year. Check out photos from a past event in Queens, NY.

At www.kaboom.org you can find great places to play, start organizing your own community-built playground, or learn how to advocate for play in your community. Donate now to help ensure there's a great place to play within walking distance of every child in America. Whether it's $10, $20, $50 or $1,000, every donation helps create great places for kids to play. Donate now and remember...it starts with a playground.

Why Play?

Too many kids are missing out on an experience that can help them grow up into healthy, happy and successful adults. The experience is play.

Play is full of creativity, exploration, imagination, physical activity, friendship and adventure and is a crucial factor in the overall well-being of children. Yet, play in many communities, schools, and families has been pushed to the back-burner. Unstructured (i.e. free, unplanned, unrestricted, spontaneous, self-motivated) play is on the decline, and so are the benefits and good habits that go with it. Fewer kids spend time every day at a park or playground, recess is disappearing from curriculums, and playgrounds are missing from community and neighborhood development plans.

There is a nationwide scarcity of play and we are beginning to see a stark difference between children who play and children who don't.

Kids who play are healthier. Kids who play are less likely to be obese and develop obesity-related health problems such as diabetes and heart disease.

Kids who play do better in school. Kids who play develop the cognitive skills that are positively linked to learning and academic performance.

Kids who play, play well as adults. Kids who play build their confidence and learn the social skills that help them become happy, well-adjusted adults.

Why aren't kids playing as much as they used to? There are at least four big reasons why. First, kids are spending more and more time in front of the television or computer. Second, the amount of space where number of accessible and safe play spaces is decreasing. Third, "structured" activities such as organized sports are replacing free, "unstructured" play. Fourth, under pressure to deliver certain academic assessments, schools are cutting down on the frequency and time kids spend in recess. Combined, these factors produce a "play deficit" that KaBOOM! is working to empower communities to overcome.

Over the past 11 years KaBOOM! has worked with amazing partners like JetBlue to build over 1300 play spaces. To learn more about what we do, why play matters and how you can get involved, visit www.kaboom.org.

Donations

If you're interested in helping to ensure that there's a great place to play within walking distance of every child in America by making a donation to Kaboom, click here!