Pure Playground Madness

The song Get Silly by Soldier Boy appropriately dominated the Playground Program competition on Wednesday. The kids showed how much they enjoy going down the street to their local playgrounds during these hot days of summer. The trophies sat all shiny, waiting for their winners, while kids enjoyed carnival games made by each playground, the moon bounce, and refreshments.

With loud booms The Finest! drummed up a big opening to the skit competition with their red flags and fast moves. I owe a great debt of gratitude to my good friend, Judith Scott, who not only interpreted all the performances for me but is responsible for most of these descriptive comments. Music-wise, I was a bit out of my element. Don’t feel bad if you don’t recognize these songs!

Beall danced out to Get Silly in well-practiced unison, shakin’ it as the audience sung along. Elwood Smith acted out games to the Jeopardy theme song and invited the audience to “Name That Game!”. Twinbrook went back to the 70’s Working at the Carwash, dancing down the Soul Train line. Lincoln/Israel two-stepped to not only Get Silly but also added some flying moves to go along with Superman. Everyone should know that this is the most downloaded music on the internet and it did not get any Grammy nominations! How out of it! Montrose put on their hand-crafted masks and added some howling to Michael Jackson’s Thriller. Maryvale did some lovey, dovey dancing moves to Chris Brown’s Kiss Kiss and Get Silly again. After all was danced and done, the winner of the Best Skit Presentation was Woodley Gardens which added a little something extra by having Lil’ John and his rapper entourage interact with everyone and apparently he sounds the same in real life … hard to believe!

Lincoln/Israel won the Meeting the Challenge trophy because, when faced with the closure of this site due to low enrollment, the kids and staff went door to door with fliers and spread the word. Now they are "rocking and rolling” with enough kids for the summer. Great job!

The other winners are:
Best Banner (pictured here): Beall
Quick Start Tennis: Elwood Smith
Best Staff Team: Maryvale and Montrose
Quiet Storm: Woodley Gardens (never a word)
Most Improved: Twinbrook
Most Nurturing Staff: Elwood Smith
Most Organized: Lakewood
Most Varied Sports & Games: Montrose
Most Creative Arts & Crafts: Potomac Wood
Most Enthusiastic: Beall and Maryvale.

And now, drumroll please, the winner of the City Cup for bragging rights as the Most Spirited, Enthusiastic, Well-organized and Overall Impressive Playground for the next year was Maryvale! With Potomac Woods taking 2nd and Montrose 3rd.

One thing we noticed is that the leaders were having more fun than the kids! This program truly provides great experiences to kids that don’t have the opportunity to go to the pool, bowling alley, or any other camps. The kids in my neighborhood enjoy getting together rather than hanging out in their apartments. What are they all going to do in August when the Summer Playground program closes?