Beatin’ the heat: Parks summer programs continue with Slip ‘N’ Slide

• By Deanna Kirk  –  Corsicana Daily Sun

Mondays may be dreary for some, but not for about 350 kids who turned out at Community Park for slipping, sliding, and a pickle party. Say that three times really fast.

The Corsicana Parks and Recreation Department hauled out the giant slide at Community Park Monday and mixed soap with water for a really good “slip,” and supplied the pickles as well as the summer fun tunes.

“We had 250 box lunches that FJV brought and handed out and they were gone within an hour,” said Sharla Allen, director of the Parks and Recreation Department.

Once the lunches of peanut butter and jelly, a cheesestick, pear, and chocolate milk were gone, there were still kids waiting in line. Family Joint Ventures is a non-profit 501(c)3 based in DeSoto that brings already-prepared meals to serve free-of-charge in the community.

Parks Department crew served the pickles, and Allen said they ran out of everything, including drinking water.

“You could hear those kids all over that park, you can tell that they loved it,” she said. “My guys even loved seeing it, the kids loved it so much.

“We have kayaking, messy art, and golf this week too in our summer programs.”

Allen said the Slip-N-Slide/Pickle Party will be reprised one more time on Monday, July 18. Everyone is welcome, there is no sign-up required for the event.

“There will be kids waiting for us to turn the water on,” she said. “We really enjoy this event. I think they went from that water event to the Spray Park, because it was packed. We are just happy from our Parks Department for kids to be enjoying our events.”

Allen also reminds those who regularly use the park pools, and know they are closed for maintenance on Mondays and Tuesdays, that the pools will be open on Monday, July 4 for the holiday, then the town will gather at the IOOF Park for the fireworks display sponsored by the Corsicana Rotary Club.