The Moose Jaw Events Centre and its partners are celebrating the success of the inaugural Touch-A-Truck event in September, which raised $600 to support literacy initiatives in the community.
The Events Centre, the Early Years Family Resource Centre, OVG360, the Moose Jaw and District Chamber of Commerce, Moose Jaw Public Library and Moose Jaw Literacy Network collaborated on the event, which occurred on Sept. 10 and attracted over 1,000 people.
Children could get up close with fire trucks, police cars, school buses, ambulances, cranes and other vehicles and learn more about them, how they work and the people who operate them.
“The day was amazing!” said Christine Boyczuk, co-ordinator for the Moose Jaw Literacy Network. “The engagement among the children, families, drivers and operators enriched the children’s learning experience very much. We were all so grateful for the owners and operators who got into the event in such a positive way.
“The management and staff at the Event Centre went out of their way to create a successful event. We hope that we will be able to host this event for many years and many children to come.”
The event was free, with proceeds from the outdoor concession donated to the Dolly Parton Imagination Library — Moose Jaw Chapter.
As the world’s preeminent early childhood book-gifting program, Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library mails high-quality, age-appropriate, cost-free books to children from birth to age five in partnership with community affiliates.
Children whose parents enroll them in the library receive one new book each month. Throughout enrolment, a personal library of up to 60 books is created, helping form the foundation of a child’s early reading experience.
The chamber was thrilled to be a community partner in the Touch-A-Truck event, while it commended the organizing committee for doing a great job, said CEO Rob Clark.
"We believe that a strong community starts with our youth, and we couldn’t be happier to be a small part of this event,” he added. “Kudos to the Moose Jaw Event Centre and all the businesses who came out to bring their trucks and equipment to the event.”
The Events Centre had a great time hosting the event and appreciated the great organizations that pitched in to make it a success, said Ryan MacIvor, OVG360 general manager. He noted that the money from the event would support children’s literacy in their early years, which is important for their future success.
