Several new events have been added to the third annual Family Fun Day at the Park, which has been getting bigger every year.
Wendy Meyer-Jerke, City Hall public information officer, said that last year's Family Fun Day focused on Hall County's 150th anniversary.
This year, Family Fun Day is celebrating the fact Grand Island has been named one of the 100 Best Communities for Young People.
Lauren Shoemaker, who chaired the committee for morning activities, and Zach Schultz, who chaired the committee for afternoon activities, said a companion theme for the day centers on the issue of health.
Meyer-Jerke said students on the Community Youth Council wanted to have an educational aspect to the day in addition to providing an opportunity for families to come out to Stolley Park for a day of fun.
The health theme includes several categories: healthy environment, healthy bodies, healthy minds and healthy lives.
Shoemaker said the morning family scavenger hunt replaced the Disc Golf tournament that had been part of previous Family Fun Days.
Families will go from point to point in Stolley Park to pick up clues and answer questions on a scorecard, Shoemaker said.
Families with the highest number of correct answers will receive a first-, second- or third-place family prize packet, which will include gift certificates, sidewalk chalk, bubbles and other items for kids to have fun with during the summer, she said.
Families also can win just by showing up to participate in the scavenger hunt, Shoemaker said. "The first 10 families who register will get a free family day pass to the water park."
Registration for the morning scavenger hunt will begin at 9 a.m., with the hunt itself scheduled to start at 9:45 a.m.
The morning obstacle course will provide another opportunity for families to have fun together as a team, Shoemaker said. One of the activities in the obstacle course will feature team members balancing golf balls on a spoon and carrying the cargo back-and-forth.
Schultz said Family Fun Day at the Park will feature a different kind of obstacle course in the afternoon. He said the Community Youth Council arranged to have an inflatable obstacle course put up in the park in the afternoon.
Schultz said a previous Family Fun Day had an inflatable "jumper," which could accommodate only one young person at a time. He noted that the jumper could carry only so much weight, which meant that only younger children could enjoy that activity.
Schultz said the inflatable obstacle course can be used by everyone from young children to teens such as himself.
Other afternoon activities include a soccer skills challenge, family games, a rock band sponsored by Best Buy, an education pavilion, cotton candy, bubbles, water balloons, duck pond, clowns, balloons, Mexican bingo, snow cones, rock climbing and a vehicle display.
Meyer-Jerke said all these activities fit in with the theme of health. She noted that events such as the soccer skills challenge and rock climbing give young people the opportunity to exercise.
The games give families the chance to exercise their minds, while children and family will be able go to the education pavilion to pick up seeds that can be planted to create a healthy environment, Meyer-Jerke said.
Schultz said the Fatal Vision course gives an educational anti-alcohol and anti-drug message. He said people put on Fatal Vision goggles, which mimic the visual effects of being intoxicated. They then try to drive golf carts.
"I've done it, and it's really hard," he said.
Schultz said magician Jeff Quinn will be a new aspect of the evening entertainment. Quinn will present a magic show that gives an anti-drug message and promotes a healthy lifestyle for young people.
Quinn's performance starts at 7:30 p.m., Meyer-Jerke said. There will be a brief break following the magic show and then the day will conclude with the showing of a family-friendly movie near sunset, which means the movie should start at about 9 p.m.
Meyer-Jerke said all activities created by the Community Youth Council are free as part of Family Fun Day at the Park. She said one of the booths at the education pavilion will be providing 100 coupons for pizza.
Meyer-Jerke said those coupons can be redeemed between 6:46 and 7:45 p.m. for a free slice of pizza and a bread stick from Little Caesar's Pizza. She said that will be an incentive for people who attend the afternoon events to return to Stolley Park for the evening entertainment.
Meyer-Jerke said that the first 100 people seated for the movie also will be given "sweet treats" in keeping with the film's theme.
During the day, families also will be able to ride the Stolley Park train for a reduced price during Saturday's event, Meyer-Jerke said.
Shoemaker and Schultz said 2,500 to 3,000 people have attended previous Family Fun Days and they are hoping even more people will attend this year.
"It keeps getting bigger and better every year," Schultz said.
IF YOU GO
Family Fun Day at the Park
- Where: Stolley Park
- When: Saturday. Registration for the morning family scavenger hunt begins at 9 a.m., with the scavenger hunt to begin after registration, mostly likely at 9:45 a.m. Other activities are offered in the afternoon and the evening will feature a magic show by Jeff Quinn and a family friendly movie which will start at sundown.
