For the past 32 years, Children’s Day has been an annual holiday in Tallahassee. On Jan. 31, hundreds of children and their parents packed the Museum of Florida History to enjoy the festivities.
Admission and parking were free to the public. There were also live performances by the Young Actors Theatre, African Caribbean Theatre and Trousdell Gymnastics. Activities that were offered included face painting and balloon animals.
Corie Watts, the Children’s Day co-coordinator, said it was an amazing event to play.
“Everyone, from the performers to the exhibitors, gets so excited about Children’s Day, and all of the hard work pays off with the pure joy and excitement on the faces of the children,” Watts said.
Parents and children were not the only ones who look forward to Children’s Day. Gary Petit, a public relations coordinator of the Museum of Florida History, said Children’s Day has many benefits.
“We have been doing this wonderful community event for 32 years and it is always so rewarding to see the kids truly enjoy themselves.,” Petit said, “Another great thing about Children’s Day is that we require all of our vendors to do at least one hands-on activity, so kids are also learning here.”
The exhibitors offered an array of activities and demonstrations for children.
One vendor that was present at the city’s Children’s Day was the Pilot Club of Tallahassee. The Pilot Club has been a part of Children’s Day for the past several years. Every year, the service organization gave away complimentary bicycle helmets to children.
Claire Mikko, the former president of The Pilot Club of Tallahassee, wanted children to be educated on safety.
“It is very important to us that we are present at Children’s Day every year because we want to make sure the kids have the tools and knowledge to stay safe,” Mikko said. “Giving away bicycle helmets is one way we like to implement examples of using safety techniques.”
Parents were just as excited as their kids to be participating in Children’s Day. Tanya Stuart, a Children’s Day attendee, brought her 4-year-old son to the event.
“This is such a fun and educational program that our kids can really benefit from,”Stuart said. “More importantly, it is a great way to give parents a break from having to create things for our kids to do.”