INNISFAIL – Swashbucklers and scallywags recently descended on the Innisfail and District Historical Village where a pot of gold was waiting.
They had swords and fired cannons.
Most of all, they had fun.
They were the adventuresome Innisfail kids of summer, and all 24 attended the historical village’s first ever free Children’s Day Pirate Camp on July 15; a one-day event for kids between the ages of five and 10 from 1 to 4 p.m.
“I had a lot of craft supplies. I had staff. I had a beautiful area,” said Anna Lenters, president of the Innisfail and District Historical Society. “And I thought, ‘why not?’
“And then I thought, ‘You know what? There was a lot of camps that didn't occur this summer, so let's bring them here,” added Lenters. “It's a bit of an experiment, and if it is successful and parents like it, we'll do it again.”
Athena Paré is a 19-year-old summer student at the historical Village. She seized Lenters’ plan and it was all-hands-on-deck to have a fun and exciting Children’s Day at the village.
“Anna had all these lovely ideas, and she wanted us to get them figured out,” she said, adding staff initially looked at books and considered bowling and even “blasting some cannons.”
But the Pirate Camp idea won out.
“We just made it more and more engaging for the children, and it was just the time and effort of putting it together so that they can see it,” said Paré, the recipient of the town’s 2021 Leaders of Tomorrow Award.
There were six stations created and many other activities, including making pirate hats in the Rotary Picnic Shelter, decorating eye patches, dropping anchors from cardboard ships, listening to pirate stories from Andrea Ware inside the Bowden Train Station, making a friendship bead bracelet, getting a tattoo, creating bubbles and shooting water cannons.
Each child received a passport, which was stamped at all six stations. They were also given good old-fashioned names like Stinky Scallywag, Captain Swashbuckler, and Swift Scallywag. With their pirate hats and a menacing eye patch, along with plenty of swashbuckling activity, every child could have their fun Blackbeard moment.
“I think it's going well. There's a lot of kids and they're all happy and they're going to have a lot of things to bring home. They got the bracelets, they have their hats, and we're going to be giving them some swords,” said Paré, adding she loved the idea of having a day just for children at the historical village.
“It's something that we should definitely start doing more often. It even gives parents a break,” she added. “It just kind of helps them (children) get more active.”
And in the end, there was a surprise for all 24 little pirates inside The Spruces. Laid out on a table in front of a war chest and beside a musket pistol, was a pot of gold coins; the sweet chocolate kind that kids love best.
“They are going to get the gold at the end,” said Paré. “It's a lovely day, and I think they're happy.”
