Mormon teacher provides playgrounds for underprivileged

Linsday Banks poses with Rikhara, a Nepalese girl from Kathmandu, Nepal.

Lindsay Banks has designed and implemented playground designs for impoverished children in Nepal, India and Ghana.

Banks' nonprofit organization, Joete's Playgrounds, was established after she arrived home in 2007 from volunteering during the summer in Kathmandu, Nepal.

The organization's mission is to raise money to spend on clothing, food, educational material and playground equipment for underprivileged children throughout the world, according to the website.

As an education major, very few study abroad programs offered school credit, so instead, Banks choose to spend this time serving others in a place that she might never visit otherwise.

Working at a home for children of prisoners in Nepal, the environment was similar to an orphanage. The children lived at the home until their parents were released or when they turned 16, she said.

"The idea of the playground came from a big metal slide at the home, but part of it was broken off and the headmaster wouldn't let them play on it," Banks said. "I went home with the idea of raising money to build the school a playground. Once I built it, I wanted to find other schools."

While volunteering in Kathmandu, Banks particularly bonded with a 4-year-old girl named Joete.

"We had an instant connection," Banks said. "She loved being held and played with. We instantly gravitated towards each other."

Because of Banks' personal ties to Kathmandu, she returned to Nepal to oversee the construction of the new playground.

Unfortunately, she was unable to inform Joete about the organization because the mother was released from prison and the whereabouts of the family are unknown.

Banks is responsible for designing the playground and providing appropriate funds.

Because she maintained contact with the headmaster, a local welder was hired to build the playground and the children painted the equipment.

"We feel it is important to support the local economies of the areas we are serving and, by providing something locally made, the equipment will last longer and serve our purpose more successfully," Banks said.

The playground projects typically take three to five months.

To complete the projects in India and Ghana, Banks partnered with a fellow schoolteacher, Amber Callister and a former LDS missionary in Ghana to obtain contacts and connections.

In India, Joete's Playground joined with Rising Star Outreach, an organization that aids children suffering from leprosy. The Ghana playground is in progress and will soon be open for the children to play on.

To raise additional funds, an online auction was held, promoting an array of Mother's Day gift baskets including a year membership to Thanksgiving Point, relaxation items and a buffet for two at Grand America. One hundred percent of the auction proceeds will go toward the playgrounds.

Donate or learn more about Joete's Playground here.