MEDIA CONTACT - Fairmount Park Conservancy
MEDIA CONTACT - Fairmount Park Conservancy
MEDIA CONTACT - Fairmount Park Conservancy
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<strong>MEDIA</strong> <strong>CONTACT</strong>: Francesca Gunning<br />
215-825-9624<br />
fgunning@levlane.com<br />
FOR IM<strong>MEDIA</strong>TE RELEASE<br />
GMC AND UNITED WAY BUILD NEW PLAYGROUND IN HUNTING PARK WITH THE<br />
HELP OF VOLUNTEERS<br />
Local partners JAWS Youth Fund, Fairmont <strong>Park</strong> <strong>Conservancy</strong>, and Philadelphia <strong>Park</strong>s &<br />
Recreation Partner to Encourage Healthy Lifestyles for Youth<br />
(From left to right) City of Philadelphia Mayor Michael<br />
Nutter helped assemble Hunting <strong>Park</strong>’s new<br />
playground with State Representative Tony Payton.<br />
Neighborhood kids enjoyed the new United Way<br />
Healthy Kids Zone- Driven by GMC after the<br />
playground build on Friday, November 4 th .<br />
(From left to right) Former Philadelphia Eagle Ron Jaworski gave a pep talk to a young park steward<br />
Joseph Fisher during the Hunting <strong>Park</strong> Playground Build led by GMC and United Way.<br />
PHILADELPHIA (November 8, 2011) -- On Friday, November 4, GMC and United Way were<br />
joined by Hunting <strong>Park</strong> United, JAWS Youth Playbook, <strong>Fairmount</strong> <strong>Park</strong> <strong>Conservancy</strong> and<br />
Philadelphia <strong>Park</strong>s & Recreation to build a United Way Healthy Kids Zone-Driven by GMC. Over<br />
50 volunteers and a few celebrity builders including City of Philadelphia Mayor Michael Nutter and<br />
former Philadelphia Eagles players Ron Jaworski, Vince Papale, Mike Mamula and Fred Barnett<br />
helped build a playground to provide a place for children to play in the North Philadelphia<br />
community.
The new playground is a component of the Hunting <strong>Park</strong> Revitalization Project, led by<br />
Philadelphia <strong>Park</strong>s & Recreation and the <strong>Fairmount</strong> <strong>Park</strong> <strong>Conservancy</strong>, which is aimed at creating<br />
a safe and well-maintained park space that will provide a place for healthy recreation for children<br />
and families, bring neighbors together and serve as a catalyst for a larger neighborhood renewal.<br />
“We want to make sure that every acre in Hunting <strong>Park</strong> is being utilized and every amenity is a<br />
positive and safe resource for the community,” said Kathryn Ott Lovell, Executive Director of the<br />
<strong>Fairmount</strong> <strong>Park</strong> <strong>Conservancy</strong>. “<strong>Park</strong>s have the ability to provide positive change to neighborhoods<br />
and the people that inhabit them. It’s critical that we make Hunting park an excellent and healthy<br />
resource for the community and this playground is another step in the right direction.”<br />
At the event, attended by the mayor, representatives from these partner organizations spoke to<br />
encourage healthy lifestyles for youth and promote volunteerism to benefit the local community.<br />
Emceeing the event was former Philadelphia Eagle Ron Jaworski, Chairman of Jaws Youth<br />
Playbook.<br />
“GMC recognizes how important it is to create new opportunities for young people to have a safe<br />
place for recreation, allowing them to lead healthier lifestyles,” said Craig Bierley, GMC<br />
Advertising and Sales Promotion director. “By working with United Way, GMC is helping make<br />
communities stronger.”<br />
This is the sixth of nine playground builds led by GMC and United Way, taking place in NFL<br />
markets across the country as part of the GMC Monday Night Football tour.<br />
“Volunteerism is at the heart of United Way’s mission. Our unique role in the community allows us<br />
to mobilize businesses, organizations and individuals to help address community-level needs,”<br />
said Jill Michal, President & CEO of United Way of Southeastern Pennsylvania. “Today is an<br />
incredible example of that work in action – this gift from GMC provided an opportunity for these<br />
partners to come together and make a difference in the Hunting <strong>Park</strong> community.”<br />
The playground equipment in Hunting <strong>Park</strong> was funded by GMC and supplied by GameTime.<br />
Volunteers from local GMC dealer FC Kerbeck in Pennsauken, NJ, also helped build the<br />
playground in Philadelphia.<br />
To view photos from the event, please visit the United Way of Southeastern Pennsylvania’s Flickr<br />
site: http://bit.ly/vUD0YR or visit http://www.jawsyouthplaybook.org/Hunting<strong>Park</strong>.html. A photo<br />
video from the event can be found on YouTube at http://bit.ly/ulKi0v.<br />
About United Way of Southeastern Pennsylvania<br />
United Way of Southeastern Pennsylvania is part of a national network of more than 1,300 locally governed<br />
organizations that work to create lasting positive changes in communities and in people’s lives. United Way<br />
engages the community to identify the underlying causes of the most significant local issues, develops<br />
strategies and pulls together financial and human resources to address them, and measure the results.<br />
United Way is advancing the common good in southeastern Pennsylvania by focusing on education for<br />
children, income for families and health for seniors. For more information about United Way, please visit:<br />
www.LIVEUNITEDsepa.org.<br />
About GMC<br />
GMC has manufactured trucks since 1902, and is one of the industry's healthiest brands. Innovation and<br />
engineering excellence is built into all GMC vehicles and the brand is evolving to offer more fuel-efficient<br />
trucks and crossovers, including the Terrain smaller SUV and Acadia crossover. GMC is the only<br />
manufacturer to offer three full-size hybrid trucks with the Yukon, Yukon Denali SUVs and the Sierra pickup.<br />
The new Sierra Heavy Duty pickups are the most capable and powerful trucks in the market. Details on all<br />
GMC models are available at www.gmc.com, on Twitter at @thisisgmc or at http://www.facebook.com/gmc.<br />
###
About JAWS Youth Playbook<br />
Jaws Youth Playbook (JYP) was founded by former Philadelphia Eagle and ESPN Monday Night Football<br />
booth announcer Ron Jaworski. JYP’s (JawsYouthPlaybook.org) works to improve the overall health and<br />
wellness of at-risk youth in the Greater Philadelphia Region.<br />
About The <strong>Fairmount</strong> <strong>Park</strong> <strong>Conservancy</strong><br />
The <strong>Fairmount</strong> <strong>Park</strong> <strong>Conservancy</strong> enhances the quality of life of the Greater Philadelphia region through the<br />
financial and programmatic support of projects throughout the <strong>Fairmount</strong> <strong>Park</strong> system. In partnership with<br />
Philadelphia <strong>Park</strong>s & Recreation and the Philadelphia community, the <strong>Fairmount</strong> <strong>Park</strong> <strong>Conservancy</strong> has<br />
raised more than $20 million for capital improvements and innovative programming. Since 2001, the<br />
<strong>Conservancy</strong> has spearheaded many signature projects including the $8 million restoration of the <strong>Fairmount</strong><br />
<strong>Park</strong> Water Works South Garden and Cliffside Path, revitalization of 13 neighborhood parks through the<br />
Growing the Neighborhood initiative, expanded environmental education opportunities for more than 22,000<br />
students, renovated Boxer’s Trail, helped manage the <strong>Fairmount</strong> <strong>Park</strong> Living History Fund to help preserve<br />
the <strong>Fairmount</strong> <strong>Park</strong> system’s 200+ historic properties and more. The <strong>Conservancy</strong> is currently working to<br />
revitalize North Philadelphia’s 87-acre Hunting <strong>Park</strong>. The <strong>Fairmount</strong> <strong>Park</strong> system covers more than 9,200<br />
acres, includes a network of more than 60 neighborhood parks and is considered the nation’s largest urban<br />
park system. For more information, please visit www.myphillypark.org. Find the <strong>Fairmount</strong> <strong>Park</strong><br />
<strong>Conservancy</strong> on Facebook and on Twitter @MyPhilly<strong>Park</strong>.<br />
Hunting <strong>Park</strong> Revitalization Project supporters include Cindy and John Affleck; Citizens Bank; City of<br />
Philadelphia; The Honorable Darrell L. Clarke; Commonwealth of Pennsylvania; Convergence Partnership<br />
of the Tides Foundation; KaBOOM!; Patricia Kind; Laura and Marc McKenna; McLean Contributionship;<br />
Philadelphia <strong>Park</strong>s & Recreation; Pennsylvania State Representative Tony Payton; The Honorable Maria<br />
Quinones-Sanchez; Robert Wood Johnson Foundation; The Ryan Howard Family Foundation; NFL<br />
Grassroots/LISC; United States Tennis Association; Edith R. Dixon; Dorrance H. Hamilton 99 Charitable<br />
Trust; FMC Corporation; Energy Coordinating Agency; and our Growing the Neighborhood sponsors ACE<br />
Group; MedRisk; NovaCare Rehabilitation; The Philadelphia Foundation - Alfred J. Lofgren & Antoinette<br />
Farrar Seymour Donor-Advised Fund; PRWT Services, Inc.; TD Bank Foundation; and U.S. Facilities, Inc.