This year, across Saskatchewan there were 61 registered ambassadors and 32 communities that proclaimed June is Recreation & Parks Month. There were baseball tournaments, family days in the park, picnics, kid’s games and water activities. Regina Beach was one community that hosted a multitude of complimentary activities for community members and visitors of all ages. I got in touch with Melissa the Recreation Coordinator for South Shore Community to discuss their local JRPM event.
Regina Beach Parks & Rec chose to participate in JRPM to encourage more people 
to be more active and engaged in our community. To kick off this initiative Regina Beach Parks & Rec hosted a “Get Outdoors Summer Kick-off Event on June 11th. The title “Get Outdoors” expresses the need to embrace and participate in outdoor recreation. This fun celebration in our Lions Park highlighted the great things that are already happening in our community that help keep people active and healthy. It promotes outdoor recreation and celebrates the return of summer programming and new programs beginning.
Regina Beach Parks & Rec teamed up with community organizations and instructors to make this event possible. Thanks to all our volunteers we were able to have local instructors lead Zumba, yoga and skateboarding. We had different games at the park like Ladder Ball, Giant Twister and sack races. Buena Vista Parks & Rec joined the event to make wind socks with the children, and the Last Mountain Lake Cultural Centre had a rock painting table for all ages.
Since we are a community adjacent to a lake used for recreation purposes by residents and visitors alike, we also teamed up with our local beach shop, Regina Beach W.O.W Rentals, to do free Stand Up Paddleboarding and Kayaking trials. Parks & Rec had also planned on taking their canoes out to promote Canoe Crew which happens throughout the summer months. Unfortunately, the weather decided it wasn’t going to cooperate so these water activities had to be cancelled for the day. The weather didn’t slow some down though. We even had Zumba goers still dancing away in the rain, and many braved the elements and stuck around to continue the fun!
For people who wanted to make a day out of the event, we had a barbeque hosted by our Community Garden Committee. This barbeque was part of their fundraising efforts for the future garden.
There were many prizes to be won including a FitBit, Slip n’ Slide and JRPM merchandise. We were also very fortunate to have some local businesses like Blue Bird Café, Subway and Peter’s Sewer Service, who so graciously donated many prizes for this event as well. To encourage participation, you could only receive an entry form after participating in an activity…the more they participated, the higher their chances were!
To end the celebration the Regina Beach Parks & Rec Committee, with the support of Fresh Air Cinemas and some local business such as the Regina Beach Yacht Club, Deegra Construction Ltd., Hordos Insurance Brokers Inc., Waterfront Beach Bar & Grill and Rudy’s, planned a free Outdoor Movie in the park. Our local ice cream shop, Sundae Times, even donated bags of popcorn for the movie goers and our Youth Club kids sold drinks and munchies as a fundraiser for their camping trip. Due to the rain and wind in the area we had to move this to an indoor location though. 
Regina Beach is comprised of many people of all ages who utilize parks and facilities for recreation, fitness and cultural activities. Regina Beach is thought of as a ‘recreational location’ and this event is important to fostering community involvement. Participating in the JRPM is a great opportunity to motivate and support residents to take their play and programs outside.
Thank you to Regina Beach for sharing the details of this wonderful example of the importance of June is Recreation & Parks Month event. I also want to give a big round of applause to all the volunteers that worked hard to put on events in their communities. On behalf of myself and all of the staff at SPRA, I would like to thank all communities for participating in JRPM, and the community members for attending and supporting SPRA in encouraging everyone to “Live it every day”. We look forward to seeing everyone out again next year!
