ARLINGTON — Two dozen organizations with activities for kids and information for parents plan to set up booths this weekend at the second Community Connects Family Expo of North Snohomish County.
About 450 people came to last year’s expo, organized by Arlington Mothers of Preschoolers, or MOPS. The group would like to make it an annual event, coordinator Amy Jo Irwin said.
It’s scheduled from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Saturday at the Arlington Free Methodist Church’s youth center, 730 E. Highland Drive. Admission is free. There’s a fee for vendors to have a booth.
“We needed to come up with a fundraiser for our group that was fun and sustainable,” Irwin said. “A lot of groups do a dinner and auction. But we don’t need to raise a ton of money, so we kind of shifted our focus from doing something that brings in a ton of money to something that’s more of a service for the community.”
Every exhibitor at the event is there because they have kid- or family-oriented products or services, she said. They’re required to come up with some kind of activity for children at their station, which makes the expo a play day for kids along with a research and networking time for parents.
New this year is an area where kids can try different kinds of classes to see if they like them. USTA Martial Arts is putting on a taekwondo class, Arlington School of Dance and Rising Stars Gymnastics have beginner lessons ready and Arlington Free Methodist Church has prepared a science class from its Vacation Bible School program.
Irwin is excited for the classes because her 6-year-old daughter has started asking if she can do taekwondo. Now she can try the class before the family commits to regular lessons. Irwin also has a 3-year-old son who is sure to enjoy activities at the booths, such as mixing and playing with his own play dough at the Snohomish County Early Head Start booth.
“It really is all ages,” Irwin said. “If you had to narrow it down, it would be mostly young preschooler through upper elementary, but really there’s something for everybody there.”
Food and raffle packages provided by local businesses also are part of the event. The expo is mainly focused on services from Everett north to the Skagit County line and from Camano Island east to Darrington.
“We really want to connect families,” Irwin said. “I know myself, as a mother, sometimes I’m searching for different services or products and I don’t realize what’s available in my area. We want to connect parents to the help they need. It’s almost like one-stop shopping.”
There’s no requirement to sign up for anything or buy anything, she said. For more information about the event, go to facebook.com/ccfamilyexpo.
Kari Bray: 425-339-3439; kbray@heraldnet.com.
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