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Family Center plans back to school bash
By ANNE LINDBERG
© St. Petersburg Times, LEALMAN -- With the beginning of school a week away, kids may want a last fling and parents may need to do some last-minute searching for school supplies. Both can accomplish their goals at Saturday's Back to School Carnival, sponsored for the third year by the Lealman Family Center. The carnival is open from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. at Lealman Park, on the northeast corner of 54th Avenue N and 39th Street. "We do it annually for the kids in the east Lealman area," said Mike Quinlivan, executive director of the Family Center. "We try to bring some school supplies for the kids and we have displays from the different agencies who get involved in the area." There will be games, two moonwalks and a firetruck to explore. Lealman firefighters will supply hot dogs, popcorn, snow cones and help distribute Pepsis, said Lealman Fire Marshal Bob Christie. The department also will hand out information on fire prevention and safety, he said. Lealman Community Association members will explain their views on annexation, take signatures on petitions for street lights, and go over the revitalization plan that members have been working on for a year. Association president Ray Neri said members will steer people to the League of Women Voters booth, where a voter registration drive will be gearing up. Neri's organization wants more people to get registered, which will give Lealman more political clout when money is doled out at the state and county levels. Also present at the carnival will be social service agencies such as AARP and Americorps, and the Juvenile Welfare Board, the Pinellas County Sheriff's Office and Family Continuity Programs. Each booth, Quinlivan said, will hand out free school supplies (as long as they last) as well as literature and information. The supplies range from backpacks to pens, pencils, glue sticks, erasers and folders. "Basically everything they need," Quinlivan said. But while the carnival is open to all, the school supplies are limited to kids who live in the east Lealman area, Quinlivan said. "We just try to help out this area," he said.
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From the Times South Pinellas desks |
