Source: Jewish National Fund
The Jewish National Fund has dedicated the largest indoor playground in Israel in Sderot on Purim, 2009. The 21,000 square-foot state of the art rocket-proof Indoor Recreational Center provides Sderot’s youth with a place to have fun, connect with friends, enjoy stimulating classes, and be children, safe from Kassam rockets fired from the Gaza strip.
Over the last eight years, eight Sderot residents have been killed, hundreds wounded and nearly everyone in the working-class town of 24,000 has been traumatized by the frequent sound of sirens and explosions of incoming projectiles fired by Palestinian militants just across the fence in Gaza. The JNF decided to help the town's children cope with the situation by providing them with a rocket proof recreation center.
The $5 million recreation center, funded by the Jewish National Fund-US, is surrounded by anti-shockwave walls, painted in blue, yellow, green and red. The center has room for 500 people at a time, providing a safe center of activity for Sderot's 3000 children.
The new playground, located in a secure industrial zone in an old textile warehouse, features:
• Recreational and exercise facilities for children ages 16 and under
• Jungle gym equipment
• Soccer field and volleyball court
• Rock climbing wall
• Snack area and gift shop
• Movie and television area
• Well-fitted classrooms
• Disco, swing sets, a merry-go-round, and more