Donald Teuma-Castelletti
SHAWVILLE July 7, 2018
The Shawville Fairgrounds was repurposed into a playground parking lot for all sorts of local vehicles, as kids ran about experiencing demonstrations, honking truck horns and more at an event on Saturday.
That’s because the Parents’ Voice Shawville held their second Touch a Truck event, offering excited youngsters the chance to climb about and hop in the driver’s seat of everything from Zambonis through to firetrucks, school buses, dragsters and more.
Met with an outstanding turnout, according to Parents’ Voice committee member Patti Moffat, the event was a hit right from the start at 10 a.m.
“There were at least 400 people, it’s hard to keep track,” said Moffat, of attendance. “It’s been incredible, at 10 o’clock it was like a wall of people [arriving].”
The free-to-attend event saw vehicles arranged lining the perimeter of the fairgrounds, with doors open to let kids climb about.
Some had demonstrations, like Lalonde’s Towing letting kids try tug-o-war with the truck’s hook or woodcutting with Ross Vowles, while others were plenty exciting enough just for visitors to give the air horn a blast, sending parents jumping skyward every time.
Unperturbed by the horns were a couple of horses from GELAM Riding Stables, offering free rides to children near the entrance of the event.
“This gives kids a chance to get up close with the horses, who may not have had the chance to before,” said GELAM owner Ginger Finan, of her participation.
Also at the fairgrounds were plenty of food options, with Billy T’s selling pizza slices while the Shawville 4H Club served up ice cream, plus Larocque’s Snack Shack rounding out the choices. To top it all off, there was a tent for face painting, and three characters from television’s Paw Patrol periodically made appearances throughout.
While the event was free to attend, the committee was collecting donations for their continued efforts to equip Mill Dam Park with a Shade Sail. Having fundraised for the past three years, the group hopes to finish saving up soon and help keep things cool with some extra shade at the park.
The Touch a Truck event is a bi-annual opportunity for children and families to get a closer look at their favourite mighty machines, switching out every other year with the Parents’ Voice Park Party.
