Children and families can get outside, explore parks, read and learn about the universe during the Get Outdoors (GO) Lancaster! program, which will run through Saturday, Aug. 10, at the Ephrata Public Library, Adamstown Public Library and Eastern Lancaster County Library. WellSpan Health and the three Lancaster County libraries are sponsoring the activity and reading program, which has the theme "GO and Explore the Universe!"
The GO program promotes reading and physical activity through the hobby of letterboxing, in which participants follow written clues to locate hidden items. Launch pads - wooden marker posts with a unique etching attached - have been hidden in various local and state parks. Participants who locate all 15 posts will end up walking more than nine miles. Last year, almost 200 children returned etching sheets for the Ephrata area program, representing more than 1,360 miles walked.
Children will have an opportunity to win prizes at the completion of the program. Those who turn in their etching sheets with at least three completed etchings will receive a prize, and those who complete four etchings will be eligible for a chance to win one of three grand prizes. A program guide, called a Sky Map, is available for free at the three participating libraries. It contains the clues a family needs to locate each launch pad. The libraries will also provide a separate etching sheet that participants can use to make a rubbing with a crayon or pencil at each launch pad. The program also has a Facebook page, where participants can post photos of their hunts for the posts and offer tips to others to help find them.
The program is funded through WellSpan's Community Partnership Grant Program. These grants are awarded to nonprofit organizations that improve the health of the communities and people WellSpan serves.
For more information about the GO Lancaster! program, readers may visit http://www.golancaster.org. More information on WellSpan's Community Partnership Grants and other ways in which WellSpan promotes healthy communities may be found at http://www.WellSpan.org/Neighbors.
Leave a Review