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Community Corner

'Playin' in the Park' Entices Families

Fit Kids Playground's monthly events at Curtis Hixon Waterfront Park encourage families to learn and play together.

Balls bounced, bubbles floated, and squeals of delight filled the air during Tuesday's Fit Kids Playground "Playin' in the Park" event at Curtis Hixon Park. The free monthly event, brainchild of Fit Kids founder and Seminole Heights resident Marisa Langford, invites Bay area children and their parents out to play.

And play they did.

It's all about keeping it simple and getting kids moving, Langford said. Jump ropes, giant balls and hula hoops were scattered on the lawn for youngsters to use during the event; free kites were provided by the Children's Cancer Center.

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Juice samples, provided by Cool Juice, were a hit with the busy bodies, who worked up a good sweat in the balmy afternoon breeze.

The first Fit Kids Playground event was held in 2009. Another was held in 2010. But Langford wanted to reach more families, more often, she said. The monthly events began in March, thanks to a grant from the We Can! organization.

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"We try to switch it up every month and keep it fresh," Langford said. "The whole concept is getting parents out to try new things with their kids."

The Lotus Room offers free kids' yoga each month during the event, which coincide with the Glazer Children's Museum's Target $2 First Tuesdays. Past events have included representatives from the Tampa Bay Rays and various youth athletic organizations.

Debbie Barker brought her grandchildren Madisyn Bearce, 8, and Landon Bearce, 4, from Ocala to spend the afternoon at the children's museum. The Fit Kids Playground event right next door "was a nice surprise," Barker said.

Madisyn's favorite part of the afternoon was hula hooping and jumping rope, she said.

Andrea Beran of St. Petersburg brings her sons Griffin, 4, and Graeme, 6 months, to the children's museum regularly. The Fit Kids event was a pleasant addition to the afternoon for them, as well.

"They've done such a nice job with this space, it's so nice for kids," Beran said.

Part of Fit Kids Playground's mission is to inspire people to go out and use public spaces such as Curtis Hixon Park, Langford said. The organization also works to put information on healthy choices and activities for children in the hands of caregivers.

We work some wonderful larger organizations that have great information, but they don't always have the means to get it directly to the parents, Langford said. Fit Kids events offer an opportunity to gather that information all in one place.

I may come across a great organization, but if I have to go home, look it up online and print out the information while juggling Girl Scouts and soccer practice, and if in the meantime my printer is out of ink, you've lost me, Langford said.

The monthly events strive to put all of that information into one place, so that parents can find out what they need to know while their children are playing, then take it home and use it immediately, she said. Knowing what resources are available is helpful for busy families looking for ways to keep their children active and healthy, and "every city should be every parent's playground," Langford said.

The website also is designed to be a clearinghouse of information for Bay area parents.

Langford said the support Fit Kids Playground receives from the Tampa Downtown partnership has had a huge impact on Fit Kids' success, as has the relationship she has built with the children's museum and the businesses who come out to the events.

"I just see it growing and getting better every month," Langford said.

Playin' in the Park runs from 3 to 7 p.m. on the first Tuesday of each month at Curtis Hixon Park in downtown Tampa.

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