As the weather warms up, days get longer and the school year winds down. Many families will be on the lookout for fun ways to get outside. While there are a lot of options around Fayetteville and the surrounding area, one day in particular should be on families’ calendars: Saturday, June 7, from 2 p.m. to 5 p.m., the Kiwanis Club of Fayetteville will host their third annual Family Fun Day at the Kiwanis Recreation Center. This free event will have something for kids of all ages and their parents. It promises to be a great time to play, run, bounce, splash, and enjoy one of our city’s many fun parks.
On June 7, the park and splash pad at 352 Devers Street will be open as usual. But on this particular Saturday, there will be more fun activities going on. There will be a bounce house. There will be games, face painting, even a bubble station where children can try and create the biggest bubble. There will be fire trucks and police cars to see and explore, along with firefighters and police officers to meet and greet; there may even be an appearance from the Fayetteville Police Department’s K-9 unit. There will be popcorn, drinks, and snow cones. At last year’s Family Fun Day, over 600 snow cones were given away; this year, they are ready to give out even more.
Representatives from Cumberland County Library will be on hand with information about their summer reading programs, which always provide great incentives for kids and adults to read during the summer months. Also, the Cape Fear Botanical Garden will be there with information about their programs.
The Cape Fear Valley Blood Donor Center will host a blood drive during the event. The Blood Donor Center is our area’s only local blood donation center; all of the blood donated stays in our local community as Cape Fear Valley supports Cumberland, Hoke, Harnett, and Bladen Counties. Family Fun Day provides a great way to possibly serve the local community as well as having a blast with the family.
Pint Sized Pasture, a family farm located in Sanford, NC, will also be in attendance. This local attraction is a traveling petting zoo. On June 7, they are travelling to Family Fun Day with bunnies, goats, maybe even some chickens.
This free, family-friendly event is sponsored by the Kiwanis Club of Fayetteville. The Kiwanis Club is a global service organization that is “dedicated to improving the world, one child and one community at a time," according to the Kiwanis International Facebook page. The Fayetteville chapter of the Kiwanis Club sponsors the Terrific Kids program, a student-recognition program that promotes character development, self-esteem, and perseverance for students. It reaches over 20,000 students in 44 schools and is the largest Terrific Kids program in the world. Kiwanis also provides over 4,000 books to Head Start and Chapter One programs each year as part of their Reading is Fun(damental) program, which works to promote early literacy.
For a club whose focus is service to children and families of our community, it is not hard to imagine that they would host a great event for families to enjoy time together, playing and exploring various organizations and services. All this excitement is free to enjoy at the Kiwanis Recreation Center at 352 Devers Street on June 7 from 2 p.m. to 5 p.m.