As a neighbor and friend of the Damian family, I have watched them walk through their tragic loss with purpose and desire to reach the Georgetown community with the mission of The Playful Child Foundation: to nurture the mental and physical health of children & families by cultivating the healing value of unstructured play in our community. In honor of their son, Kade, and many others who have died too soon, they plan to build a memorial park and playground in Georgetown, TX. Together with the city of a Georgetown, Covey Landscape Architects and many volunteers, they have designed an amazing space where everyone can heal through play. This park is truly a reflection of Kade and his energy, curiosity, and joy for life. I can’t wait to see this dream become a reality for the Damians and our city.
Good people, doing a great thing for the right people, kids. Sole objective is to improve their lives through play
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I am the Executive Director of The Institute for Excellence in Nonprofits (The Institute) and I have been consulting with Julie Damien, her Playful Child Board of Directors, and her Board Committees for just over two years. The Playful Child has all their Governance documents in order, they have a Strategic Plan, and most importantly, they are implementing the Strategic Plan through their Committees. Julie and her Board are committed to continuous improvement, shown by their interest in completing The Institute's Self-Assessment (a Malcolm Baldrige-based assessment model) in 2023. I believe Julie has built her nonprofit organization on a solid foundation and is committed along with her Board to its sustainability and performance excellence.
This is a wonderful organization! They are truly dedicated to providing a place where kids can come and find a special place to heal from the loss of a friend or loved one. After the loss of their own son, they’ve dedicated their time and resources to help others experiencing a loss. You couldn’t find a more amazing family. They’ve experienced so much loss and I’m so proud of them for pouring their heart and soul into this project!
I have been supporting THE PLAYFUL CHILD since it began as I believe in its mission. Great community project to honor those that left us too soon. Kade was a student at our church preschool and I will never forget this sweet child. So proud of his parents for undertaking this monumental project that will benefit children for generations.
I know this family personally. This park is a great tribute to their son. I am grateful to be a part of this legacy.
The playful child is such an amazing organization. Through a tragedy, the founders have been able to raise awareness of the dangers of some fencing. This organization is striving to give back to our local children and provide an open ended play structure. I cannot wait to see this put into place. Please volunteer, donate, or just share the word for this incredible organization.
The Playful Child is a wonderful organization in loving memory of a sweet little boy. The hardworking committee is collaborative and creative, especially for the Healing Hearts Hike, the biggest annual fundraiser of the foundation. It is a great group of people who I thoroughly enjoy working with on this project.
Children will get to experience play in a natural setting that allows their imaginations to flourish and expand. Children’s play is children’s work. This is how they process and grow. I am so excited to have this park on our cities wonderful trail system. We will all be blessed by the park. Children through play and many grieving adults will feel the kinship that they are not alone. Being at a park that recognizes the ones we said goodbye to allows a sense of not being alone in grief.
God bless the Damian Family for turning their grief into a blessing for so many. Sweet Kade will continue to bring joy to those of us that may never have “known” him.
As a Board member, I have a passion for this organization and to see us do great things. I love to include my family in our events, from park cleanups to play dates and fundraisers. Raising my children to be compassionate and understanding of other people's life experiences is one of my values. We are ready to see Kade's Park built and to help grieving children heal.
The Playful Child is such a wonderful and meaningful nonprofit. To create this incredible legacy ensures that something both amazing and healing will come out of the tragedy of losing a child. The strength it takes to move forward is awe inspiring. Play...while it is such a simple concept in and of itself, it truly is the backbone of childhood and continues to be the best way for children to learn and grow. Thank you to Julie and her sweet family for their continued efforts in helping to enrich the lives of other families and children in our community. We support you 100%!
The Playful Child is a foundation that promotes the mental and physical health of children & families by cultivating the healing value of unstructured play in our community. A goal of kids being kids, and learning through being outside, in nature, to develop life skills; problem-solving, compassion, empathy, stewardship, abilities, and more. Bringing the need of childhood play to the forefront in our community. Unfortunately in life, sometimes we have loss, people are taken from our lives too soon; and having a place to remember and heal about those things is a goal with the creation of the Kade Damian Healing Hearts Park.
My husband and I attended the Healing Hearts Hike on October 17th. It was a great way to spend a day! Julie and her team of volunteers put on an excellent community event with a lot of heart. I can’t wait to see what else the Playful Child has in the works. Let’s Build a Park!!!
The Playful Child is working in our community to promote the healing value of unstructured play thereby nurturing the mental and physical health of families. Currently, the organization is working to raise funds to build a playground along the San Gabriel River walking trail. The Kade Damien Healing Hearts Park park will be a living memorial to the lives of the children in our community who have died.
The founder and the Board have worked tirelessly to get city approval and to raise funds for each step of the process of building the park. The plan is to break ground on the park in January, 2022 and with the devoted group of people working on this project, they will succeed.
A great charity with a great mission to get a park built for all kids to enjoy! We’re seeing more and more how important outside play is and the work the Playful Child does couldn’t be more important!
Absolutely love this nonprofit. Their social media ideas are very educational to raising a family. The mission to build a park in Georgetown deserves a standing ovation. The most important part is providing a support group to help families heal with the loss of a child.
We had been trying to get a memorial bench put in a Georgetown park for our daughter with no luck. I reached out to the playful child after seeing their sign at the site of their future park, just knowing that would be the perfect park for our bench. Julie has been amazing and has included us on decision making, especially for the benches that will go in. We can’t wait to see this park come to life and have somewhere special for our daughter to be remembered while our son and daughter-on-the-way play. It will be a unique park that all children can benefit from, as well as a place for parents to heal.
I love following along with their social media pages. They have great advice for parents and caregivers.
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I recently worked with Julie Damian on a video project to help promote Playful Child. Julie is determined, creative, open-minded, smart, and committed to the completion of this project. Once the park is complete, who knows what Playful Child will also accomplish! I am incredibly honored to be a part of such a wonderful program.
The Playful Child is a fantastic organization that adds value to the community through programs and education. I can't wait for the park project to be complete. It will be a beautiful place of playfulness and of healing for our community.
The Playful Child is an all volunteer group working with the city of Georgetown Texas to create a great park for all the kids in the area. This park is designed to let kids explore and connect with the world through open-ended, unscripted play. They get to use their imagination to create new experiences, exactly the way research says they learn best.
I volunteer and support The Playful Child so my son Kade, will always be remembered & his brothers will have a way to honor his memory thru play. Super Kade
When I met Julie for the first time the passion and drive she has for this organization, and the vision to make this park a reality, was nothing short of inspiring and a real call to action. The goal of creating a park for natural play that will allow kids to explore, play, create and heal is going to be amazing. As a Landscape Architect, and a part of the Georgetown community, I am honored to be a part of this organization and to see this park be built for the enjoyment and happiness of all kids and their families.
Julie has to be one of the most passionate and driven people I have ever had the fortune of collaborating with. What she has started with The Playful Child Foundation is a labor of love, passion and inspiration. Every person involved with this foundation has a seat at the table because of a shared vision and a commitment to the next generation. I truly cannot say enough!
The Playful Child nonprofit was established by Julie Damian to honor the life and carry on the memory of her son Kade by creating a park specifically designed for children and dedicated to helping families heal through play.
The mission of the Playful Child is to "nurture the mental and physical health of children & families by cultivating the healing value of unstructured play in our community."
Please visit the organization's website to learn more. https://www.theplayfulchild.org
The mission of The Playful Child is to build a park that will give family's a place to engage in unstructured play. We are partnering with The City of Georgetown to help make that goal a reality.
The Playful Child foundation’s mission and pursuit to bring about creativity as well as imagination within our children through play is truly an altruistic endeavor. What they stand for and their goals for the future will bring about a better community for our children to grow and learn in. I’m eager to see their park come to fruition and the work they do afterwards to continue making an impact in our world.
I have been volunteering with Julie and The Playful Child for the past year. The goals of this organization will impact our community in great ways, while honoring the loved ones of families. The fundraising events are so fun to volunteer for! My favorite was Pictures with Santa! And my own family's pictures with Santa turned out so cute and will be a family memory we treasure.
What Julie has envisioned is nothing less than perfect! As a former Kindergarten teacher, she knows exactly what kids need and love and it will all be happening in this park! I am so happy to support this project and truly hope that you will too!
The Playful Child foundation is a gift to our community. Our founder, Julie, is a source of strength for so many as she has allowed her process of healing to be see and channelled creatively. Georgetown is blessed by this foundation and I am fortunate to be able to serve as a board member.
I have been involved with The Playful Child since its inception as a volunteer and committee member. I highly recommend the organization and its founder Julie Damian for their hard work, and positive and generous attitude. The current project undertaken by the nonprofit is construction of a natural park and playground in Georgetown, TX. This park in memory of Julie’s son Kade is being designed as a natural park and playground to provide a place of healing, memory, and play for those who have experienced loss and for the community. I highly recommend support of this organization as they raise support and funds for construction of this unique park that will be an asset for the community for years to come.