Kids' Club at Poplar Beach and Wakaw
The Resort Village of Wakaw Lake received grant funding from the Community Initiatives Fund enabling them, once again, to offer a summer Kids Club at the Poplar Beech gazebo for children ages four to twelve. Priority will be given to children from the Resort Village and lake residences, and if spots are still available, they will be open for other children. Kids Club will run in the mornings from 9:30 am to 12:00 pm, Monday to Thursday, July 2 to August 22.
This is the third year for the Kids Club at the Resort Village and CAO Pam Winteringham shared that two staff have been hired to run the program, a former Educational Assistant who is entering university this fall for a degree in education, and a high school student from Warman whose parents have a spot at the lake. The programming will involve significant outdoor activities and learning opportunities taking full advantage of the walking trails and the ecological environment around the lake.
The Town of Wakaw Summer Kids’ Club program also launches on July 2nd and runs to August 15th, Monday through Thursday from 1:30 – 4:30 p.m. The town’s program is also made possible by grant funding from the Community Initiatives Fund. Registration for Wakaw’s program occurred on the first day of the child’s attendance.
Historically, Kids’ Club began as a volunteer-run program in 2003 and, since 2007, the Kids’ Club program has benefitted from grants from the federal government and sponsorship from local businesses for supplies and materials. Until last year the Canada Summer Jobs program provided funding to hire staff. Neither the Town of Wakaw nor the Resort Village of Wakaw Lake had funding applications approved for their summer programs last year, but the Village managed to run its program.
This year both programs will share a ‘lead’ organizer in Reece and, therefore, will run at alternate times, one in the morning and the other in the afternoon. With the different settings, the two programs will naturally include different experiences for the children while still providing a variety of games and sports activities, crafts, scavenger hunts, nature exploration, and recreation.
Carol Baldwin, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, Wakaw Recorder
