As a fellow Thoreau mom and playground committee volunteer, I just want to take a moment to celebrate how far we’ve come and share how grateful I am for our village.

A few weeks ago, we heard from a parent whose first grader, Saxon, wanted to help raise money for the new playground. That conversation led us to discover that our online fundraising platform allows us to set up personalized fundraising pages—a great way for anyone who wants to help spread the word and ask for donations from their friends and family.

If you’re reading this, you’re part of something big—our community-wide effort to bring Thoreau’s Backyard playground to life!  With the upper playground being removed, this is our chance to build a special play space for our children now and for children years from now.

This is Benjamin Klein – a Concord dad with a fourth grader (Max) and first grader (Nathan) at Thoreau, and one more future Husky (Vivian). It has been truly amazing to see the community’s support for Thoreau’s Backyard, including all of the generous financial donations that have been coming in.

I’m excited to share the latest design update for Thoreau’s Backyard! I’ve been inspired by the incredible support and enthusiasm we’ve seen so far from our community. While there’s still work to do, we’re making great progress, and I’m delighted to show you where things stand.

I’m absolutely thrilled to share that thanks to so many of your generous contributions during our December campaign, we’ve raised 50% of our total goal for the new playground. We’re officially halfway there!

I’m also excited to share some updates to the project website! We’ve been working hard to make it a better resource for everyone following along, and I’d love for you to check it out—maybe even share it with your kids over the holidays.

As we approach the Thanksgiving holiday (and our beloved Turkey Trot tradition!), we’re feeling grateful for this incredible community and the spirit of generosity that makes it so special.

Building a playground like this is a team effort, and our timeline is tight. We hope to have all the funds by late spring 2025, so we can embark on a community-build project next fall, just in time for the next school year. Every gift will bring us closer to making Thoreau’s Backyard a reality.

If you've walked by the parking lot or existing gaga pit lately for pick up, you know it's time for a change! Imagine this space transformed into a vibrant, nature-inspired playground where our children can play, explore, and connect with one another in new ways.

We are thrilled to announce the launch of an exciting project that will transform the way our children play at Thoreau Elementary. A brand-new playground is on the horizon, and we want you to be part of making it happen.