Extreme Makeover: Home Edition 
BCI Burke donates extreme playground in Kansas City
Express design, fabrication and shipping challenges and excites Burke team
When the call came asking for a thrilling new playground to be designed, created and shipped in two weeks for the hit TV show “Extreme Makeover: Home Edition,” the team at BCI Burke—from engineering to design to production-took a deep breath and jumped at the chance. All of the details came together efficiently and the 2000-square-foot playground was installed in Chouteau Greenway Park just a few blocks away from the dream home built for the deserving “Extreme Makeover” family.
Michelle and Jesus Jacobo, their four children, five nieces and nephews (ranging in age from 6 months to 18 years) and Michelle’s father, Grandpa Ray, lived in a 900 square foot home that required the adults to sleep on the floor and even in the unheated garage. The extraordinary 5,100 square-foot home was built on the same site in 96 hours to the delight of the family and all who witnessed the transformation.
The neighborhood playground was added to the wish list for the project and it was the more far-reaching benefit to the community that compelled Burke to become involved.
“We are ecstatic to not only help this extremely worthy family, but to have the chance to touch many more children and families in their neighborhood and provide the Kansas City community with a great place to gather and play,” he adds.
“Giving back is the right thing to do and an important part of our mission at Burke. We are blessed as a company to be able to provide our products and services to a family and their community who are so deserving of this playground,” Ahern notes. “This is, without a doubt, a very rewarding experience on many levels.”
Ahern traveled to Kansas City to help build the playground alongside Burke manufacturer’s representatives Julie Scott and Dan Riggs of Riggs Recreation, as well as a team of local professionals including Artistic Designs Lawn and Landscape, Commercial Playground Installers, Playscapes Systems, Downing Construction, Kevin Green Homes, McCray Lumber, Northland Ready Mix, and Mead Concrete Construction. All materials and labor for the playground were donated for the $100,000 playground project.
“It’s fantastic, because this was on the drawing board as a wish for the neighborhood,” said Jim Rice, executive director of the Northland Neighborhoods Inc. “This is a total bonus of a first-class playground and it happened in a week.”
Ahern also participated in the infamous “Move that bus” event when the Jacobo family saw their stunning new home for the first time. And he witnessed the culmination of all of the hard work at the dedication of the playground that took place Mother’s Day weekend, when the Jacobo story aired on “Extreme Makeover.”
“It was obviously extremely rewarding to be a part of the commendable project. But the real joy was to be able to witness the neighborhood kids and families have fun on a playground that they had only been able to dream about until now. This, truly, is the ultimate benefit,” says Ahern. View Podcast About Burke's Participation In Extreme Makeover: Home EditionClick on the Play button to view the Podcast
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