Lots to do for the whole pack as multiple establishments celebrate Family Day in Lethbridge

The University of Lethbridge brought back its Play Day event for Family Day on Monday.

It was the first time the institution had held the event in person since the pandemic began, and families from across southern Alberta turned out.

“We invited families from across Southern Alberta to our campus to explore a variety of fun play zone activities together,” said Kali McKay, U of L’s director of community engagement.

There were sports activities like basketball, hockey, swimming and rock climbing, but also craft activities like building cardboard forts.

“I like it because you can hang out with your family and spend time with them,” said seven-year-old Mila Fuentes.

“I’m looking forward to swimming and playing down there in the athletic field because I’m an athlete,” added Quinn Byers, who turned 13 on Monday.

This year’s Play Day was all about the jungle and required more than 150 volunteers and helpers.

“We have groups from across campus who donate their time,” McKay said.

“Groups like Destination Exploration and our Pronghorn athletes.”

“It’s just awesome to come out and engage with our community to give a face to some of the programs that we do here at U of L,” added Steph Elder, who volunteered to be part of Play Day reported by Destination Exploration.

Parents say they’re happy to take the whole family out of the cold for a free day of fun.

“It’s great to do things together as a family,” Brad Moser told CTV News.

“This is a great opportunity because everything is together, everything is indoors and we don’t have to endure the cold weather. We can just have fun together as a family.”

Play Day was held at the First Choice Savings Center on the university campus and was hosted by several groups including the law firms of North & Company as the main sponsor.

That wasn’t all that was happening in Lethbridge on Family Day.

While many businesses are closed for the holidays, the Helen Schuler Nature Center opened its doors, although it is normally closed on Mondays.

Families spent the day learning about climate change, electricity and getting close to Davy the gopher snake.

The center wanted to offer educational activities for families to participate in this family day.

Despite the snow, many visitors even explored the center’s outdoor trails.

“It was a busy day, which is good. We always like to see it. But a lot of people, not only inside but also on the paths. So it’s good to see that this winter storm hasn’t stopped people from enjoying the outdoors,” said Taylor Hecker, nature program coordinator.

The Casa Arts Center also hosted its own free Family Day event, where visitors could learn all about how musical instruments work, how buttons are made, and how to draw.

The most popular attraction was Box City, where kids and their parents could paint boxes and make whatever they wanted out of them.

Casa staff hope the event will help steer attendees toward the arts.

“We are very focused on teaching children art basics. We want people to be artists and creators for life, so coming to Casa and participating in a free art event is a great opportunity,” said Courtney Faulkner, Education Coordinator. Coordinator at Casa.

These were just a few of the many events in Lethbridge and Southern Alberta where families took the day off and had quality time together.