Grand Terrace’s Day of Community Fun

If you are a resident of Grand Terrace and enjoy spending time with your community at an event that is packed with entertainment and fun, then hopefully you had the chance to make it out to Rollins Park last Saturday, June 8, for the annual Grand Terrace Community Day event, hosted by the Foundation of Grand Terrace. The day included a long list of activities for adults and children, such as contests like sack races and the ever-popular watermelon-eating contest. Residents of the city were also welcomed with live music, performances ranging from ballet to break dancing, karate to tap-dancing, plenty of food options, and over fifty booths from businesses, organizations, clubs and groups from around the community. Grand Terrace Community Day started out as a city-hosted event with the goal of bringing together the city’s tight-knit community. Two years ago, due to budget cuts, the City transferred the role of event host to the Foundation of Grand Terrace to keep the tradition alive. The Foundation has now hosted the event for the past two years. Grand Terrace Planning Commissioner and Vice President of Marketing and Development with the Foundation of Grand Terrace Ryan Stephens said, “Last year we had about 2,500 people attend the event. We are hoping for growth of that number every year.” The event kicked off with the presentation of the flag by the Grand Terrace Cub Scouts and the National Anthem sung by Mayor Pro Tem Bernardo Sandoval’s wife Francine Sandoval. Shortly after, Dance Dimensions Performance Arts Center entertained the crowds with seven routines from their members, including routines that covered hip-hop, jazz and tap dances. Throughout the day, many more performances were given between contests and events. A total of four contests were held throughout the day and were split between ages eleven and under and ages twelve and over. The first contests were the sack races, followed directly by the watermelon-eating contest, where plenty of adults, teens, and children stuffed their stomachs with as much watermelon as they could in thirty seconds. While Mayor Pro Tem Sandoval was able to win the watermelon-eating contest with the all-in strategy that most competitors had adopted, Mayor Walt Stanckiewitz made sure to keep it classy during the contest, wearing a napkin around his neck and utilizing the fork he held in his hand. The next contest was the water-balloon toss, where teams of two were challenged to throw a water balloon back and forth to each other without letting it burst. Those who fell out early were at least able to cool off a bit from the summer heat with the water from their balloons. The football toss was the last contest to be held and drew plenty of competitors. Among the 52 booths that were at the event, organizations such as The REC Center, The Boys and Girls Club, the Grand Terrace High School football team, The Amputee Connection and the Grand Terrace Cub Scouts were present as well, either fundraising or spreading the word about their organization, and participating in the community day fun. Resident Erin Elliott made sure to take her daughter to the Boy and Girls Club booth for the gift bag and bead jewelry stations for kids. “I make sure to come every year to bring the kids. The first thing my daughter said when we got here was ‘I love this!’” Elliott said. The event will continue to be held each year and will continue to serve as a day for the residents and organizations of Grand Terrace to come out and have fun.