Morgan Stanley builds another playground in Baltimore, as part of its Healthy Cities program.
Playgrounds are more than just safe places to run, jump, swing and slide. They also give kids a chance to cut loose, laugh and squeal at the top of their lungs; use their imagination and make new friends.
The importance of play areas for children's all-round health and wellbeing is why volunteers from the firm partnered with KaBOOM! in September, as part of its Healthy Cities program, to build a second playground in Baltimore. It’s housed in the neighborhood of Upton, where families make an average of $27,000 a year, and up to 98% of kids going to public primary and middle schools are eligible for free or reduced cost meals.
About 1,000 children and their families will enjoy the new playground at the Union Baptist-Harvey Johnson Head Start center, as well as the first play space built on Baltimore’s Family Recovery Program premises.
Baltimore is the ninth city to be included in the Morgan Stanley Healthy Cities program. “We are very proud of the Healthy Cities program, because it’s a great way of integrating the amazing work of our local non-profit partners to support a child’s healthy start to life,” says Joan Steinberg, Global Head of Philanthropy at Morgan Stanley.
Morgan Stanley Healthy Cities was launched in 2014 and has since delivered wellness, nutrition and play resources in Chicago, IL, Newark , NJ, Oakland, CA, London, UK, Cleveland, OH, Houston, TX, Mumbai, India, and New Orleans, LA.
