Children and families can get outside, explore parks, read and learn about folklore, mythology and fantasy during the Get Outdoors (GO) Lancaster! program at Ephrata Public Library and Adamstown Public Library. WellSpan Health and the libraries are sponsoring the activity and reading program, which has the theme "GO and Find Your Story!"
It promotes reading and physical activity through the hobby of letterboxing, in which participants follow written clues to locate hidden items. Story pages - wooden marker posts with a unique etching attached - have been hidden in a total of 15 local and state parks. The program gives children an opportunity to win prizes at the completion of the program.
A program guide called "Story Book" is available free at the Ephrata and Adamstown libraries. It contains the clues a family needs to locate each story page. A separate etching sheet is used to collect a picture of each story page, by making a rubbing with a crayon or pencil at the hidden post. This year, all posts have a unique four-digit code that participants enter through their library accounts to receive credit for the hike. The etching sheets will not be collected this year, so participants must enter each code to receive credit.
They are also encouraged to adhere to the guidelines for safe health, including social distancing, wearing of masks, washing and sanitizing hands frequently, and being physically active. Participants are also encouraged to share photos of their hunts and offer tips via the program's Facebook page.
The program will run through Sunday, Aug. 30. Participants who locate all 15 posts will end up walking more than 11 miles. Children who log at least three completed etchings will receive a prize. Additional grand prizes will be awarded, based on the number of etched rubbings completed or digital codes recorded.
The GO! program was introduced in York in 2008 as a brainchild of the Healthy York County Coalition's Healthy Lifestyles Task Force. The task force was looking for a way to battle childhood obesity in Pennsylvania, and letterboxing was chosen as a way to get children moving. Last year, over 500 children returned etching sheets for the Lancaster County program, during which they walked more than 3,300 miles.
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 how WellSpan promotes healthy communities may be found at http://www.WellSpan.org/Neighbors.
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