Nearly 100 employees of Gulfstream Aerospace Corp. built a playground Dec. 1 for the students at Kicklighter Resource Center, 7219 Seawright Dr., as part of Gulfstream’s ongoing community outreach efforts.
Kicklighter is a nonprofit organization dedicated to improving the lives of children and adults with developmental disabilities such as autism and cerebral palsy. Its programs include Kicklighter Academy, an early care and learning center for children ages 6 weeks through 6 years.
“Instead of using money that would normally go to buying end-of-year employee appreciation gifts, the product support employees within Gulfstream decided to do a community project,” said Tim Steinhauser, Gulfstream’s director of customer relations. “The employees loved the idea of giving back to children in the community with a new playground.”
Two Savannah nonprofits, the United Way of the Coastal Empire and HandsOn Savannah, identified Kicklighter as a perfect candidate for the project.
“We are very thankful to Gulfstream and the other Savannah businesses that made this playground possible,” said Dianne Wilson-Evatt, Kicklighter’s program administrator. “Through grants and other means, we’ve been trying to get funds for a playground since 2009.”
Wilson-Evatt said new equipment will enable most — if not all — of Kicklighter’s 83 students to enjoy the playground at the same time.
“Because we didn’t have enough equipment before, I had to restrict the use of the playground to one class at a time,” she said. “That’s only about nine kids. I believe we can get every one of them out here now. There will be lots of smiling faces.”
Earlier last week, Savannah-area businesses Triplett Land Clearing excavated the land and Dustcom brought in dirt to fill in erosion-affected areas. Other area businesses involved in the project included Right-Way, ABM Industries, Sodexo, Stage Front, The Home Depot and Royal Restrooms.