First Day Festival to be held today
Back to school
The seventh annual First Day Festival will be held from 1 to 4 p.m. today at Liberty Square near the South Carolina Aquarium and Charleston Maritime Center downtown.
Its goal is to ramp up students' excitement about returning to class. The first day of school in Dorchester 2 and 4 is Monday, and the first day in Berkeley and Charleston is Tuesday.
One new aspect of the festival will be a health and wellness zone that includes health-related exhibits and vision screenings.
The event's food court has been transformed and redesigned to offer a more educational experience to promote healthy lifestyles and wellness. Attendees will be able to sample healthy snacks and foods, and local chefs will perform cooking demonstrations with nutritional options.
More than 9,000 children and their parents attended the city-sponsored event last year, and officials encouraged families to come to the festival for free school supplies, entertainment, food, boat rides and information about services for students.
The festival this year will include a food drive. Attendees are asked to bring a nonperishable food item to donate to the Lowcountry Food Bank. It's not a requirement for admission, and Jacquie Kennedy, executive director of the Charleston Mayor's Office for Children, Youth and Families, said she thought it would be a small but wonderful way to give back to the community.
Families can park for $1 at the Aquarium and Gaillard garages, and shuttles will be provided from the Gaillard garage.
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