Families Had the Fun this Weekend

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The hot and windy weather didn’t deter area residents from attending the Lamar Fireman’s Family Carnival at Bi-Centennial Park this past Friday, June 21.  The winds did pick up on Friday which meant that several of the display tents at the park had to come down for safety reasons, but there were still plenty of people on hand to enjoy themselves just before the weekend got into full swing.

All the games were simple enough to have been conducted over a hundred years ago…balloon darts, ring toss, water-bucket splash, and All the Right Moves youngsters doing the hokey-pokey out on the lawn.  Folks realized that fun doesn’t have to get complicated in order to have a good time.  Some people sat on lawn chairs and others just sat on the lawn.  Hot dogs from the grill and some drinks were available, while Lamar Fire Department staff and volunteers manned the booths and a table set up for donations for the fireworks display.  

More families turned out for the Saturday Family Fun Day at Willow Creek Park the next day, Saturday, June 22.   A cooler day was offered for this event with a 9am family fun walk/run/rode around the park with free tee shirts to the first 100 kids.  A come and go count for the attendees ran around 800, ranging from the morning games to free swimming from 1 to 5pm in the municipal pool, live music with lunch at noon, the 7pm family field day and the 9pm family movie, The Lorax, which ran under the stars at Willow Creek Park.  Various health oriented booths were on display including High Plains Community Health Center, Lamar Parks and Rec, Prowers County Fatherhood Program, and Partners for HOPE, as well as LiveWell. 

Early work for the Urban Land Institute and Colorado Health Foundation was also evidenced with some signage on display for health lifestyle practices with 5-2-1-0 painted on the pathways around the park and Parkview Elementary School, nearby.

By Russ Baldwin