Play Day
We Came, We Saw, We Played
The Value of Sport & Play Celebrated Nationally On June 24th
Play Day, a National Day of Play, was celebrated on June 24 by over 50 organizations from California to Massachusetts. In Los Angeles, over 300 youth from local youth organizations celebrated Play Day. Our flagship event was held at Soboroff Field in Exposition Park and a satellite Play Day, in partnership with Park on the Move, was held at Buford Elementary School in Lennox. Seven professional sports teams and numerous youth and nonprofit organizations hosted activations ranging from traditional sports like football and soccer to a golf driving range, archery, Double Dutch jump rope, Ultimate frisbee, dance and yoga.
June 24 was officially declared “Play Day” by the California State Senate, and the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors, with each governing body recognizing the positive contributions of the LA84 Foundation and the Play Equity Fund to communities. We shipped “Play Day In A Box” kits from coast to coast to support a day of play for over 5,000 kids nationally and called attention to the rights to play.
A grant from the CalMHSA Take Action LA Community Grants Program as well as support from 10 sponsors helped make Play Day so impactful. Every attendee received a limited edition Play Day shirt, a collaboration with UNDEFEATED and the UNDEFEATED Foundation. Nationwide, there was strong social media participation from organizations, individuals and institutions all sharing how they play using #PlayDay2023 and #PlayEquityNow.