Kids, families gather in AIken for fun on wheels

Bill Bengtson, Aiken Standard, S.C.
·2 min read

Oct. 3—One of Aiken's most popular kid-friendly events was back at full throttle — and full volume — Saturday at Virginia Acres Park, with the annual Touch-A-Truck event drawing almost 3,000 people.

The event's 2020 version was cancelled due to COVID-19 but construction equipment, a fire truck, police cars, an industrial-size lawn mower and other attractions were back in place on the park's soccer field. Kids were invited to get acquainted with vehicles that might otherwise be beyond their reach, with sirens and horns as part of the mix.

The event went off as planned and had "lots of honking and lots of climbing on equipment," in the words of Alison Cribb, one of the municipal government's recreation program coordinators.

Cribb noted that the event is traditionally held in July, which is harder to take in terms of heat and usually involved having a fire truck on hand to hose down anybody needing some relief from summertime sizzle. The October event, she said, "went well, so this will probably be the new season for Touch-A-Truck."

Sponsoring this year's event was K. Ward Aerial Technology, owned and operated by local resident Kristen Ward, which provides a range of services relating to fiber optics. She said she and her husband Zach welcomed the opportunity to sponsor a family-friendly event that would provide an easy opportunity for kids in particular to get outdoors.

She added that her son Leo, 2, gladly accepted the opportunity to spend the entire time — 8 a.m. to 1 p.m., in his case — getting acquainted with police cars. "He's a big police fan."

Among other organizations on board were Aiken Department of Public Safety, Aiken Electric Cooperative and the Aiken-Bamberg-Barnwell-Edgefield Regional Library System.

"Everyone knows kids love trucks, tractors, trains, horns ... all that stuff," Cribb said, "and it's just a great way for us to put something together that's fun for the little kids to come out and experience."

"The kids love trucks," Cribb said. "It's so weird. They're just fascinated."