Family Fun Day

Family Fun Day is an event held by the Center for Independent Living every year for families with children who have disabilities. Family Fun Day is part of CIL’s Family Disability Navigator program and focuses on giving parents and children a day to have fun and relax. This year’s Family Fun Day was held at the Barnett Park Gymnasium and was filled with games and activities for the families. There were a number of physical activities for the children to participate in, such as scooters, mini golf, basketball, and more. There were also many creative activity stations available. One of the most popular stations was the spin art table, where kids got to make paintings by squirting paint onto a spinning piece of paper. Besides the spin art table there was also arts and crafts, face painting, and a sensory table. These activities were available all day long but there were also special events for the kids such as a hula hoop contest and a raffle. The raffle prizes included tickets to Wonderworks, The Museum of Discovery and Science, and even Legoland. On top of all these exciting activities the families were also provided with snacks throughout the day and pizza was served for lunch. Overall, the event was an exciting time for parents and children alike.

Family Fun Day is about having fun but it’s also about so much more than that. One of the parents who was present at the event explained that for her and her son, events like this make them feel like they’re supported by a community. She appreciates the opportunity to go to an event that’s equipped to handle her child’s needs, and she’s always happy to see her son connecting with children like him. Another parent in the Family Disability Navigator program loves Family fun Day because it gives her son the chance to feel like he belongs and to play with kids who understand him. Beyond the activities at Family Fun Day, CIL and the Family Disability Navigator program helped her family greatly when it came to getting a diagnosis for her son and getting the necessary treatments and accommodations he needed. Family Fun Day is just one part of the larger effort CIL puts into making sure families are supported and appreciated. Shandra, one of CIL’s case managers in the Community Inclusion program, enjoyed seeing the children have fun and loved getting to meet the many different families in the program. This was her second time volunteering at Family Fun Day and seeing the kids get excited for the various activities always makes her smile. To her, Family Fun Day is a way to show families that CIL appreciates them and that we’re happy to be working with them.

Family Fun Day is an event that brings families together for a day of relaxation, fun, and community, but it is also so much more than that. It’s a day for parents to trust that their children’s needs will be accounted for, a chance for children to develop friendships and community with peers who understand their unique experiences, and it’s an opportunity for CIL’s staff to show consumers how much we care. Family Fun Day is a labor of love for CIL, and we will always cherish the excitement and happiness that this event brings to the families we work with.