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Slide Into Summer 2019 Recap

Last week, kids and safety officials filled the field at the Ludlow Community Center/ Randall Boys & Girls club our 5th annual Slide Into Summer Safety. This year, children were invited to celebrate the end of the school year with slippery fun, safety tips, ice cream, free bicycle helmets, raffle prizes, music played by DJ Jesse Paulo and more.

Ludlow Police officer marking a child's bracelet
Ludlow Police officer marking a child’s bracelet

Slide Into Summer Safety is intended to foster positive engagement between children and local safety officials, so that they may be comfortable and well-equipped to communicate with their local firefighters and police officers in the case of an emergency. Throughout the day, Students were encouraged to high five and chat with Ludlow firefighters and police officers to receive raffle tickets and win prizes.

After the PV team spent the morning in meticulous preparation for the event, our 28 generous high school volunteers began to arrive. We’re always thankful for the students, parents, sponsors, friends, and family who donate their time and energy to help make this event possible!

The first round of children were Ludlow Community Center/ Randall Boys & Girls pre-school and After School Club members, who were lucky enough to enjoy the sunniest part of the day. They capitalized on the good weather and got the party going with countless trips down the slides, spontaneous dance parties, and getting blasted by the fire hose.

Dance-off!
Dance-off!

“In our 5th year of hosting Slide Into Summer Safety, we believe that if we can make a difference in one child’s life, this event is worth it. It is crucial that we create opportunities for our kids to engage with and respect our local officials, as it plays a big role in developing our future leaders,” says Ed Sokolowski.

In the afternoon, Slide Into Summer Safety became open to the public, bringing in over 400 attendees. The cloudy weather didn’t stop the children from sliding, singing, dancing, fostering friendships and creating memories.

A pair of children race down the slide

We’d like to take a moment to thank Elsie’s Creamery at Randall’s Farm and Greenhouse for providing the ice cream, the Ludlow CARES Coalition for providing raffle prizes, and Ludlow Rotary for providing free bicycle helmets! Without our sponsors and volunteers, this event wouldn’t be possible.

“Building strong character is a community-wide effort,” says Joe Leonczyk. “We’re thankful for all the ways our community partners and public safety officials step up to create opportunities for our kids to learn and grow, during Slide into Summer Safety and throughout the year.”

The PV family poses for a photo!
The PV family poses for a photo!

We hope to see you all next year!