New playground built for kids…and adults

With some hammering, drilling, and lifting — a new playground is just a hop, skip, and a jump away for kids.

“At the end of the day, literally at the end of one day, they’re going to have a playground in an area that really needs it,” Humana’s Tom Noland said.

Three charity organizations — Humana, KaBOOM!, and The Boys and Girls Club of the Coachella Valley — along with the city of Desert Hot Springs — came together to put together what kids in Desert Hot Springs didn’t have.

With 382 volunteers, they created the masterpiece playground in less than six hours. A few volunteers sound off on how this big change will change the city.

“It’s very important for our children to have a place to go, have fun, get out of the house for the day and get active instead of being inside all day,” Desert Hot Springs High School student Laura Sanford said.

“I’m sure it’ll prevent crime because it’s a place they can go and be safe after school, before they’re parents get home in the evening. They can get their homework done,” Desert Hot Springs mayor Yvonne Parks said.

This multigenerational playground was made for adults, too.

“We have three energy stations, which has a whole range of stretches, push ups, sit-ups, that both kids and adults can participate in,” Ted Friedman of KaBOOM said.

“One of the things we like to say at Humana is we make healthy things fun, and fun things healthy,” Noland said.

Well said, and well done.