Our Mission

Our mission is to harness the power of community to promote healthy development through perinatal education, childhood play & community connection.

Recess Collective is an inclusive community driven organization committed to supporting families from the time of pregnancy through the first four years by providing opportunities for perinatal education, play, creativity, support & connection.

We aim to provide families with the resources they need in order to confidently step into the realm of parenthood. Then, we strive to address the intangible roadblocks that present themselves while raising children in an urban environment

Authentic community support, reliable in-a-pinch caregiving options, access to vetted resources and a safe, clean space for play are all crucial to supporting parents. In this way, we provide a structure and support system for parenthood that starts at the beginning when parents need it most. By building a small, connected village, we can lighten the load.

Our Vision

Ultimately, our vision is that every community has a neighborhood hub to gather, with a safe space for young children to play, access to vital resources for caregivers and authentic connection & support.

When every family with young children has access to such a place & concrete support in times of need, we will have a society where mental health for parents is improved, child development milestones are met, and families can count on one another to lighten the load.

Our Goals

Equip parents and families with the knowledge, skills and practices they need give their children the best start in life.
Few parents feel prepared for parenthood. While the first three years are a critical period for child development, it’s also when parents are feeling the most uncertain and are in need of support--whether it’s help with sleep, nutrition, behavior, health or learning milestones.
Support those who care for young children.
It’s crucial that we build a better ecosystem of reliable, quality care during the earliest years, regardless of whether children are in the care of parents, relatives, neighbors, or caregivers.
Leverage people and places (neighborhoods and communities) to create safe and engaging learning experiences for children & families.
As a child grows into the world, the safety and accessibility of their physical environment plays a role in healthy brain development and growth. Research shows that safe, responsive and nurturing environments are a crucial part of supporting the learning and development of children ages 0-3.

Our Activities

Provide families with safe space(s) to gather, receive support and combat isolation by creating community groups, social interaction through new parent groups, support for postpartum depression, etc.
Partner with other community organizations to provide vetted experts to parents, work with seniors to build multi-generational volunteer opportunities, and leverage collaboration to build a true web of support amongst families.
Create space for children to come as they are, to explore freely, and develop through access to play. It’s crucial that all children, regardless of ability, race, socioeconomic level, etc have this opportunity.
Raise funds to create new spaces to bring community hubs to more neighborhoods.

Join Us! Current Programming

Change a family's Story with your support

our story

Our city is filled with resources and families, but without a hub to bring folks together and a format to disseminate vetted information, raising young children can be a tremendously isolating and daunting task. Parenting is the great equalizer — regardless of resources/socio-economic level, it is hard work & we all benefit from high quality support.

In 2007, Recess set out to become the hub that any parent could show up, feel welcome, and let their child safely explore. In essence, we designed a space and a structure for people to come together around the shared goal of raising healthy families. And still today, we're working to connect parents, caregivers, families and organizations that are all eager to learn from each other, thereby improving our collective community's ability to flourish.

Over the past 16 years, Recess has become a pillar of the parenting community. By supporting both young children and their grownups, we have enriched the lives of thousands of San Francisco families in our own brick and mortar locations. We’ve also had the opportunity to design & build out spaces in public facilities such as Raley’s supermarkets, small businesses such as Spirited Play Lab, Andytown, and private homes.

During the pandemic, when it became unsafe to gather indoors, our much loved physical space was unable to operate and ultimately had to close. But because safe play, support, and connection were actually needed more than ever, we accelerated our strategic plan and morphed Recess’ offerings into a mobile format. This initiative, Recess on Wheels has the potential to expand the communities Recess is able to serve by providing playgroups and special events in outdoor spaces throughout the city. With the launch of Recess on Wheels, we are no longer restricted by geography. This work is crucial during a time when families are isolated, have fewer opportunities for connection, and the mental health of new parents is at risk.

As we move beyond the pandemic (hopefully!), our goal is to continue to deliver outdoor, in-person, programming, continue providing parent support workshops online, and move forward with our initiative to create neighborhood-specific spaces for play and support with community partners. The potential to transform the experience of a family through the dissemination of vetted information and the creation of a support system is tremendous.

How we started

Our Programs