Folsom’s Lion’s Park and the parking area around the Public Library was a busy place Wednesday morning as residents of many ages flocked to the area to partake in all of the educational fun to be had at the the City of Folsom’s annual City Works Day.
City Works Day in Folsom takes place in conjunction with National Public Works Week, which is ponsored by the American Public Works Association. Each year, the City of Folsom’s Public Works Department celebrates the local City Works Day to commemorate the achievements of Public Works in the daily lives of Folsom residents while recognizing the actions of public works in cities across the nation.
From morning until early afternoon, the event offered all types of sights, sounds and hands on opportunities from various departments and agencies throughout the city. Little ones had the opportunity to climb up into the seat of a city garbage trucks, fire engines and more. They also had the opportunity to meet local fire and police personnel, including those of the furry and four-legged varieties, which are always a top attraction as well as the men and woman in uniform that were available for residents to meet and chat with it along with those that work behind the scenes such as 911 dispatchers, library staff, city hall workers and more.
Climbing aboard some of the city’s big equipment wasn’t only for the youngsters Wednesday. Several adults took the opportunity to explore the attractions as well. From climbing aboard a city garbage truck to checking out Folsom’s Ladder Truck #35 , the event offered a hands-on perspective of what it’s like for city works of all different natures using such massive equipment in their day to day work. It wasn’t uncommon to see little ones hopping into the seat of a fire truck utility truck and honking the horn or talking over the loudspeaker.
The event drew a variety of visitors from local residents and those in the surround communities. Jennifer Thiot was one of several City of Folsom employees working the event Tuesday who was impressed with the great turnout for the annual affair this year. Thiot noted that in addition to local families coming out on their own, there were several school field trips that attended as well., 600 hundred of which were from Folsom’s Theodore Judah alone and another five busloads from area schools attended the event. Thiot estimated approximately 2,000 attended the event.
In addition to the folks in uniform the big shiny trucks and many four legged heroes, the event offered an array of educational opportunities as well. Residents traveled to various booths where they learned about different important programs such as water conservation, proper waste disposal and recycling, fire safety, public safety, parks and recreation programs and a variety of city services.
“This is such a fun event for the kids and the parents too,” said David Zachurst of Folsom, who brought his son Adam, 6, to the event. “He got to sit in the trucks, honk the horn and meet Blaze the fire dog. He’s going to be talking about this for days and thats great big thanks to the city for putting this on.”
Folsom Times Photos by Bill Sullivan
