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Children, families enjoy ‘Touch-a-Truck’ event

By Matt Koll, For The Greene County Messenger 4 min read

WAYNESBURG – In an event that has grown in popularity in each of its four years of existence, the First Baptist Church in Waynesburg hosted its annual “Touch-a-Truck” event in the parking lot of the church on Saturday, Sept. 27.

“It began four years ago as an outreach,” said event coordinator Dawn Mankey. “It was a free event for giving to the community, but it is so much more now.”

While music was playing from Waynesburg University’s radio station, WCYJ-FM, horns were honking and children were smiling, as companies and agencies from all over the Waynesburg area including Hartman and Hartman, Apex Energy and the American Red Cross offered its trucks, cranes and ambulances for full exploration by the children.

First Baptist Church volunteers also had tables of food available, as well as a table for children to get their faces painted and a raffle to give away various prize bags including Tonka trucks, Dream Lights and even a $100 Toys “R” Us gift card.

Janette Miller, a mother of four children, traveled from Washington to attend the event with her children.

“My kids’ favorite was the ambulance…and the crane…and the free ice cream (provided by Rice Energy),” said Miller. “These guys had a blast today.”

But for First Baptist Church and the people that attended, the event was about more than just having fun. The different equipment on display acted as a recruiting element to the young people of the area to peak their interest in the different industries available to them in the future.

“A lot of these children think they have to just adapt to mediocrity and poverty,” said Mankey. “But in four years, I’ve seen the children grow from not knowing what to do with their future, to seeing these careers and receiving inspiration from them for a possible career.”

Fawn Lilley, a Clarksville native who grew up in Greene County, brought her grandchildren and agrees with those sentiments.

“I come her for my grandchildren to give them something to do,” said Lilley. “But more than that, this event teaches them about life and lets them figure out what they might want to be.”

The event also taught the children about safety, due in large part to the Waynesburg Fire Department, who set up a firehouse safety demonstration, and the American Red Cross for providing one of its emergency response vehicles.

Betsy Myers, Disaster Program Specialist for Greene County, said the Red Cross is always looking for an invitation to show off their safety techniques.

“We welcome the children who come to check us out and teach them how to prevent fires and what to do when there is one,” said Myers. “We want to make sure each family has an evacuation plan and a place to meet so there is no hesitation when a fire does occur. We had about 60 kids come to us over the four hours we were here today and that’s phenomenal.”

Edward Peirce, pastor at First Baptist Church, brought the idea of “Touch-a- Truck” from a very similar event a recreation center in Tallmadge, Ohio held annually. When Peirce came to First Baptist Church, he thought it would be a great way to give back to the community. However, the Waynesburg “Touch-a-Truck” event has reached popularity beyond what was originally in place.

“We’ve gone from handing out 100 free T-shirts to 650,” said Peirce. “We’ve increased the number of vehicles, we have corporate sponsors coming to us, not us coming to them because this has become one of the most popular events in Greene County for families.”

Peirce also hopes the families can feel the care and Christian love the church is giving to the community through this event.

“We want to reach out to (the community) and do something for them, no strings attached,” said Peirce. “Certainly, we hope that they see the spirit of the church and are attracted to it, but there’s no catch with this, we don’t take up an offering, we don’t ask for money, everything is free and it’s a gift.”

At the end of the day, an estimated 600 children participated in all that the “Touch-a-Truck” event had to offer.

The event meant a lot to the children in attendance.

“One of my kids said it was one of the best days of his life,” said Miller.

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