Thank you to everyone who attended the Village Playground Ribbon Cutting, and shared this wonderful celebration with BOSS! The new playground owes its existence to the generosity and commitment of dozens of partners—its creation was a true collaboration and a labor of love.

On the breezy and cool evening of Monday October 24^th, the sound of kids playing, adults talking, and train whistles blowing on the tracks behind Ursula Sherman Village mingled as the community gathered to officially open a big and wonderful present: the new Village playground! See more ribbon-cutting pictures here.

Ursula Sherman Village provides shelter, transitional housing, and life-changing services to 50 single adults and 18 families at any one time—the number of kids varies randomly and ages range from newborns to teens. Right now there is a large group of kids age 2-10 at the Village for whom the addition of the playground is the most exciting thing that’s happened all year. Its fruition was a long time coming, thanks to so many people.

The center courtyard at the Village has long provided an outdoor space where kids could run around outdoors, with organic gardens around the perimeter offering healthy produce for the Village meals and therapeutic activity for residents. But the empty green space was devoid of any climbable structure for high-energy, imagination-filled young people—it was dotted with used plastic toys and piles of dirt and plant debris. The Village Coordinators, staff of the on-site Children’s Learning Center, and Village parents and kids longed for a more structured setting where kids could play, learn, interact, and let their imaginations blossom.

The cornerstone was set for making the playground a reality when the idea was pitched to the Berkeley Rotary Club, who jumped at the chance to positively affect the lives of Berkeley young people. The Club committed to providing funds (contingent on matching donations being raised) and providing volunteer labor. A local anonymous donor contributed $10,000. Architects, landscapers, designers, and other volunteers lined up to help. The Berkeley Rotary Club raised additional commitments from their district fund. Volunteers began the essential first step of cleaning up and preparing the courtyard space during the summer. Finally, a proposal was submitted to UC Berkeley Chancellors Community Partnership Fund for the final monies needed, with the sponsoring partnership of Cal Rotaract, the campus version of the Rotary Club.

When the UC grant was awarded and the plan could move forward in earnest, BOSS began a process of thorough design vetting and passing inspections by the City. When these hurdles were passed, a play structure was purchased and two workdays were held: dozens of Rotary, Rotaract, and Village volunteers slowly brought the jumble of materials together into a real place where kids could spend happy hours as their parents did the hard work of building new skills and seeking jobs and housing. The deceptively simple-looking structure required massive preparation of land, finely detailed structure assembly, testing and inspecting the built structure, and creating an adjacent grass hill with the excess dirt.

Finally, BOSS could share the playground with the kids at the Village, and the whole community at the October 24^th ribbon-cutting! BOSS Executive Director boona cheema welcomed guests. Jonathan DeYoe of Berkeley Rotary Club greeted guests with background on the Rotary’s involvement, their excitement with the finished product, and appreciation of the vision carried throughout the process by Village Co-Coordinator Daniel Barth. Mayor Tom Bates shared the immense work that goes into even a small playground and often goes unseen and unappreciated. Jane Micallef of the City laughed about being invited to speak despite playing the unenviable role of regulator in the process. And City Council Member Linda Maio expressed pride that this wonderful project was in her district.

And finally… it was time to play!! As the kids climbed the structure, the adults talked, and everyone enjoyed salmon, roasted potatoes, spiced garbonzo beans, and fresh fruit offered by the Village cook and staff. The evening was full of friendship and good spirits, and BOSS is forever grateful for the generosity, kindness, and partnership of all who attended, those who helped create the playground, and our whole community, who we know will support the kids and families at the Village as they work to overcome homelessness and rebuild their lives…now with a special place of their own where kids can play, learn, grow, and just be kids.

This project made possible by:

FUNDERS: UC Berkeley Chancellors Community Partnership Fund ~ Berkeley Rotary Club ~ Anonymous Donor
VOLUNTEER LABOR: Berkeley Rotary Club ~ Cal Rotaract ~ Village participants