Ahoy, me matey! Pirate-themed fun for the annual Spring Fling at the AJMC

 

The 4th Annual Spring Fling was held at the Allan & Jean Millar Centre on Saturday, April 28. After such a cold snap, the hot temperatures kept attendance numbers down a little bit as residents were out enjoying the sunshine, but plenty of families popped in to check it out. Over 200 guests took advantage of the pirate-themed afternoon event.

Organizer Angie Millard, Early Child Development Co-ordinator with the Town of Whitecourt, said she was happy to see so many smiling faces running around the ATB Financial Fieldhouse. “Our theme really seems to be going over well. Everyone looks to be having lots of fun.” The event is supported through the White-Swan-Fox Coalition and the funding that supports the coalition is an Early Childhood Coalitions Alberta (ECCA) grant.

Throughout the fieldhouse there were different booths set up offering resources and information to parents. Booths included ParentLink, Whitecourt Library, Whitecourt Fire Department, Alberta Health Services, McLeod River Primary Care Network, Bugz & Beanerz, and the Positive Parenting Program (Triple P). There was also a car seat information area and ParentLink provided on-site developmental screenings. “All the different agencies come together for this coalition to promote child development in the community.”

Beyond the information booth area of the fieldhouse, there were craft tables set up with several different pirate-themed crafts to complete and colouring pages to bring to life. There was also a huge inflatable slide, a block building area, treasure hunting in a sand-filled pool, and a pirate obstacle course with prizes for everyone who played.

Millard said they chose the pirate theme because the ParentLink team had wonderful ideas to go along with it. “It’s really hard to come up with a theme every year. They came up with pirates and I thought it was a great idea. We try and come up with neutral themes that both boys and girls are interested in checking out. My ParentLike team, Ali Westling, Tamara Blackstock, and Michelle Robinson did a fantastic job. Our photo booth was amazing!”

Parents who were not able to attend and are interested in having their child screened can do so anytime at the AJMC. “People can walk in the door here at the centre and ask for developmental screenings at any time and if we’re not available at that exact moment then we will set up an appointment to do so. They can ask for any of the ParentLink staff here as we are all qualified to do one and then we go from there. Any resources parents need, we will help them access those.”

Screenings are for children up to six years and through a questionnaire process, staff can determine if children are meeting their developmental domains. “If they aren’t meeting them then we can provide activities to do to improve them and if necessary we will refer them on to other services to further provide support. Whatever they need.”

Another fun addition to the Spring Fling event was a puppet show! PK and his Friends Forever Puppets put on a couple of shows and had parents and children laughing together. The puppets sang silly songs, performed weird dance moves, and extended beyond the stage into the audience.

After such a great event, the ParentLink crew is already brewing up ideas for next year’s fling. “We actually already have our theme picked for next year but I’m not going to tell you what it is,” laughed Millard. “You’ll have to stay tuned to find out.”