On Aug. 8, the activity at Pennypack on the Delaware showed that hard work and hard play can be the same thing.
More than 1,600 kids and 120 volunteers participated in the fifth annual Play Philly Summer Challenge. The kids got the chance to show off what they learned from six-week summer camps from more than 60 partnering recreation centers.
Dozens of attractions were available for kids to enjoy, including Wipeout-style challenges, a rock wall, an art station where kids could paint a billboard that will be displayed and a reading oasis.
Play Philly is a joint project among the Philadelphia Department of Parks and Recreation, the Philadelphia Parks Alliance and Councilman Bobby Henon. Henon said the program was to help combat childhood obesity in the city.
“If you can stop the cycle [of obesity] and get them to understand why it’s important, then hopefully we can drop the numbers [obesity rates],” Henon said.
According to a 2016 Community Health Assessment, 20.2 percent of Philadelphia children 5–18 were obese in 2014, and 33.3 percent of adults were.
This year’s main attraction was a 13-station obstacle course, which had kids scale or duck under climbing walls and run long distances.
Play Philly began in 2013 with 10 participating rec centers. The program has collectively given more than 48,000 hours of coach-facilitated, heart rate-elevating playtime to kids in summer programs since it began.
“You don’t need to be exercising, you just need to be active,” Henon said. He said he hopes events like this will teach kids the importance of being active at a young age. ••
