(Washington, DC) – This Saturday, Mayor Muriel Bowser will kick off Summer Strong DC 2016 at Truck Touch — a free, family-friendly event featuring nearly 30 government vehicles for kids to see, touch and explore.
The District has hundreds of activities lined up for the summer, including outdoor festivals, educational programs, free summer meals and youth employment initiatives. Residents can find more information at summer.dc.gov, an interactive website to discover what’s happening across the city. The site also allows the public to post information about their own events and will be updated throughout the summer.
Other digital tools and resources will be connected with Summer.DC.gov:
- Text 'SummerDC' to 96714 to receive a list of relevant activities in their area. Standard messaging rates apply.
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Residents can also get connected with hundreds of in-person and online learning opportunities available at DistrictOfLearning.org.
“Summer is all about having fun and staying active,” said Mayor Bowser. “We want to provide Washingtonians with activities and events that people of all ages, in all parts of the city, can enjoy. And that is exactly what we have planned for Summer 2016.”
Searchable by age, topic and ward, the summer.dc.gov calendar features a map of activities, with new events to be added all summer long. The site includes details for the DC Department of Parks and Recreation (DPR) summer camps, as well as information on DPR’s pool parties and hours, movie nights, Fun Wagon dates and Skatemobile — a mobile roller rink.
The website also includes information on the DC Free Summer Meals Program (which has served more than 1 million meals to children in the District of Columbia in the past three summers), which is available June 18 through August 28. And the DC Public Library is offering thousands of programs and events, including its Summer Reading Program.
Mayor Bowser understands that summertime is also about offering opportunities for learning and growth. To that end, the Department of Employment Services (DOES) provide Washington, DC youth ages 14 to 24 with high-quality, first-time summer work experiences as a means of steering youth onto the pathway to the middle class. Serving 13,000 youth this year, the Marion S. Barry Summer Youth Employment Program (MBSYEP) starts Monday, June 27, and will conclude on Friday, August 5. The program has expanded to include benefiting from Federal resources after the White House designated the District as a Summer Impact Hub. A partnership with MBSYEP, DCPS and the Clifton Foundation also offers the Career Ready Internships program, an initiative that provides 500 District youth with targeted internship opportunities.
Serve DC also offers opportunities to educate and reinforce emergency preparedness training over the summer. In honor of National Safety Month and to help meet the DC Be Ready campaign goal, Serve DC is offering multiple free Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation (CPR) and Automated External Defibrillator (AED) trainings in each of the District's eight wards.
Summer Strong DC 2016 will kick off with Truck Touch, which is an opportunity to get an up-close look at the vehicles that service the city, as well as meet some of the people who work hard to maintain the cleanliness of the city.
WHEN: Saturday, June 4, 2016 (9 am - 2 pm)
WHERE: RFK Stadium, Lot 7 (2400 East Capitol Street, SE - drivers should enter off of Benning Road, NE)