Seasonal fun on tap in your Playful City USA
Summer is in full swing! For many, that means warm-weather vacation time. And The Colony has a full slate of special events and activities keeping the fun times close to home.
Topping the list is the city’s upcoming Liberty by the Lake festival at Stewart Creek Park (3700 Sparks Road), an annual, all-day event on the Fourth of July featuring the Liberty 5K/10K/1-mile Fun Run, a parade, Salsa Shootout, watermelon-eating contest, great food, live music, and of course, one of the best fireworks shows in North Texas. For a full schedule of events, visit the event’s website.
Bounce houses, vendors, and visitors fill Stewart Creek Park at Liberty by the Lake 2013.
The fun continues later in the month, with the year’s first installment of the Sunset Concert Series from 8 to 10 p.m. July 11 at Stewart Creek Park. Relax to the sounds of Austin-based musician Jonathan Fox and enjoy the beautiful sunset on Lewisville Lake. Vehicle admission is free starting 30 minutes prior to the performance. Future concerts are set for Aug. 15 (The Creek Band) and Sept. 12 (Danny Allen), same time, same place.
New to The Colony is an old tradition which brings the works of the Bard to all walks of life. Shakespeare in the Park, presented by the City Manager’s Arts Committee, is scheduled for three nights at 7 p.m. July 18-20 at Bill Allen Memorial Park, 5900 Carroll Drive. This production of A Midsummer Night’s Dream is directed by Julia Nelson. Admission is free. Food and drinks will be available.
Staff and students at The Colony Aquatic Park work on floating techniques in June as part of the World’s Largest Swim Lesson.
Looking for somewhere to take the kids? The Colony Aquatic Park, 5580 North Colony Blvd., is open daily for public swim, with a variety of special programs and activities planned for the next two months. Not to brag (OK, we’re bragging) but the Park recently took part in a World Record attempt for the World’s Largest Swim Lesson!
There’s also two installments remaining in the Summer Cinema Clubhouse. The Nut Job will be shown from noon to 3 p.m. Thursday, July 10, at The Colony Recreation Center, 5151 North Colony Blvd. The doors open at noon, so come early to get a good seat. The event is free with concessions available for purchase. The next showing will be on Aug. 14 featuring The Lego Movie.
Kids are out of school but the workaday life continues for many parents, meaning in addition to vacation plans they must also explore options to keep kids busy when still in town. The city’s Parks and Recreation Department has several weeks of Kidz Kamp still remaining this summer.
Recreation Manager David Swain told Star Local Media last month that the city’s Kidz Kamp program has been around for more than a quarter century.
“Summer is a time for kids to have fun and play, and we feel that it is important to make this outlet available to the community,” he said. “We just want every child to have a fantastic summer each year. … One of the ‘complaints’ we get is that the kids come home too tired. That just goes to show they’re being active and having fun during the day.”
A Kidz Kamper feeds a goat during one of many field trips offered through the Parks & Rec program.
Activities offered during the camp have included trips to Hawaiian Falls, the Dallas Zoo, and Dr Pepper Ballpark in Frisco. Remaining trips in 2014 include TopGolf. Whimsey & Grace, Adventure Landing, and Sharkarosa Wildlife Ranch.
“The field trips are different each week,” Swain said. “The kids go swimming twice a week at The Colony Aquatic Park. At ‘base camp,’ they do board games, spend time in the gym playing active games, they go outside and utilize the playground and play outdoor games, read books, and take part in other camp-type games and activities like arts and crafts. The kids also attend our Summer Cinema Clubhouse events at the Recreation Center.”
For information about all these events, call the Parks and Recreation Department at 972-625-1106. For information about Shakespeare in the Park, email ShakespeareTC@gmail.com or call 972-885-9423.
If you’ve got family in town for the summer, don’t forget to swing by The Colony Convention & Visitors Bureau, 6900 Main St., to chat with their friendly staff members and pick up literature about all there is to see and do both in The Colony and the surrounding area. If you can’t come by the office, check out the Bureau’s newly restyled website, or call 972-624-5253.
The Colony, Texas 