After an active and enjoyable summer season that kicked off on July 2, the City of Moose Jaw concluded its weekday Summer Playground Program with a grand finale Summer Fun Bash at Elgin Park throughout the day on Aug. 22.
“Our Summer Fun Bash is something where we love to bring all of our staff together for one big summer day,” explained Curtis Dumont, the city’s recreation program supervisor based out of the Yara Centre.
Demara Kilgour is the city’s summer program co-ordinator and was the planner of this summer’s program lineup.
“The last day of the program was (Aug. 21) … so our big Summer Fun Bash today is… just to celebrate the end of the program and another successful year,” she explained.
The Summer Playground Program was intended for children between the ages of six and 12 and was held in six parks across the city: Sunningdale Park, Elgin Park, Optimist Park, 1996 Summer Games Park, Kinsmen Regal Heights Park, and East End Park.
The Kinsmen Regal Heights Park was the program’s latest addition and its inclusion coincided with the opening of the new spray park that was formally announced this June.
“At Elgin Park, all of our leaders showed up here today and we did a lot of our games and activities,” Dumont said.
These events entailed a few that were held throughout the summer at each park and included the returning bouncy castles from Bounce-A-Lot, a soccer match put on by the Moose Jaw Soccer Association, vending by Kona Ice, and numerous crafts, field, and water games.
Kilgour said the newly added dunk tank rented from Joe’s Place and the face painting booth were two of the biggest attractions on Aug. 22.
The conclusion of the program marked the end of park programs for the remainder of the 2024 season, and the affiliated Yara Centre camps which saw an average attendance of around 55 individuals, also concluded on Aug. 23.
The Phyllis Dewar Outdoor Pool similarly closed for the season on Aug. 25.
Most of the city’s park programs are free, but participants are asked to register so planners know how many supplies to provide and can determine how many parks to include in 2025.
From these application figures, Dumont determined that 17 children attended at the lowest and around 30 at the highest this summer. This figure was slightly lower compared to last year’s participation, which Dumont said was “pretty consistently at 30 kids” in 2023.
Certain parks consistently had a slightly lower attendance, such as Optimist Park, and Dumont suggested that sites with an available spray park tend to draw more attendance —especially on warm days like he’s seen this summer.
“It’s been warmer (this summer) than I think we were hoping for, but you know, having to run from thunderstorms is not always the best so bring on the sun, right?”
The program, Kilgour said, helps strengthen the community through the promotion of inclusivity.
“It helps bring a bunch of kids together, and it helps build inclusiveness…,” she said. “We run structured play with the kids at the parks and the Yara Centre, so the kids (also) have the opportunity to make new friends and hang out with old friends.”
Inclusivity is also fostered through a wide range of program options so there’s something for everybody from competitive games to socializing opportunities.
The summer-long program, Kilgour said, came together rather nicely.
“It was cool to see everything that I planned come together as well as getting to see all the kids every day,” she said, “It was a really cool opportunity.”
While handing out Freezies to a steady stream of young attendees, Dumont said the program would likely keep going if it wasn’t for the pending start of the fall school season.
“It’s been a fantastic summer,” he concluded.
To view upcoming program options and register in advance, visit MooseJaw.ca.
Aaron Walker
Reporter
Moose Jaw Express
