TOUCH-A-TRUCK IS FEBRUARY 2022!
What is Fun 4 Gator Kids Touch-a-Truck?
Join Fun 4 Gator Kids Community Giving, Food4Kids Backpack Program of North Florida and Gainesville Fire Rescue at Oaks Mall on February 19th, 2022 from 9am to 2 pm for the 11th Annual Fun 4 Gator Kids’ Touch-A-Truck event! Smaller children are invited to quiet hour from 9am to 10am so they can enjoy the vehicles without the noise of horns, sirens, bullhorns or PA systems.
Attendees will be able to get up close to large vehicles they may see around town. Fun 4 Gator Kids’ Touch-a-Truck provides children with a hands-on educational experience by giving them an opportunity to climb into and/or on vehicles and to talk with the operators. They will learn about the vehicles and pedestrian safety around large vehicles.
Admission is free! There will be minimal charges for some of the activities such as the balloon slingshot and face painting. Please bring a non-perishable food donation for Food4Kids Backpack Program. Keep reading to learn about the local children’s organizations this event is raising money and supplies for!
Things not to forget!
- New Location! The event will be held at Oaks Mall.
- Admission is FREE – it includes unlimited exploration and play on all vehicles plus some free kids activities in the children’s area.
- Help feed a hungry child, bring a donation of non-perishable food items for the Food4Kids Backpack Program of North Florida.
- Bring some spending money to: donate to the beneficiary, get Sweet Dreams ice cream and some lunch, do activities like the water balloon slingshot.
- Quiet hour is from 9a – 10a for kids who might be scared of sirens and PA systems.
Beneficiaries
Funds from this year’s Touch a Truck event will support programs at Gainesville Fire Rescue and the Kiwanis of Gainesville’s Safety City! Safety City, which opened February of 2002, hosts fire safety and accident prevention programs for Alachua County kids in Pre-K through high school. These programs emphasize controlling preventable injuries – the one number one killer of children. In this safety venue, children learn fire and life safety through a hands-on teaching experience.
The Mission for Safety City is to:
- Teach life-saving skills that will protect children into adulthood;
- Provide hands-on, real-world experiences that will help children handle emergency situations and prevent accidental injuries;
- Help children understand their environment and their responsibilities in society, so they grow up to be healthy, knowledgeable and safe adults.
To learn more about Safety City click here to read their brochure.
Food4Kids Backpack Program of North Florida is a 501c3 charity that provides food to children who are at risk of hunger on the weekends. Backpacks are distributed at school each Friday to the identified child and returned on Monday to be refilled.
1 out of 4 children are affected by poverty and live in food insecure homes. The program currently targets children who are “chronically hungry” and are referred into the program.
Suggested Food Donations:
- Breakfast Items (oatmeal packets, granola bars, cereals)
- Canned / Boxed Goods (beans, meats, pasta, soup, veggies)
- Snacks (raisins, pretzels, fruit cups, pudding, peanut butter and jelly, etc.)
- Drinks (shelf stable milk, juice boxes/pouches)
Fun 4 Gator Kids’ Touch a Truck event is an official drop off location for food donations. Please help to make this food drive successful by bringing one or more of the items listed above to this event!
