By Heather Wood

As the giving season starts to ramp up and Thanksgiving is only a few weeks away, besides sharing time with family and friends over food, the primary ingredient of the American Thanksgiving holiday is gratitude. While it is certainly good to have an annual holiday to remind us to express gratitude, there is much to be said for the benefits of cultivating the spirit of thankfulness year-round. Kernersville Parks and Recreation would like to thank our community, sponsors, and vendors for their continued support. As passionate professionals, it is our strong belief that the services, programs, and events provided through Parks and Recreation are a critical component to the high quality of life in our community. Kernersville is a desirable, safe, and fun place to live and work, largely due to the well-maintained parks, facilities, organized special events that produce special memories, and opportunities to meet new people and socialize through structured and drop-in programs. All these things combined create a sense of place, or community.

Local businesses and organized groups are also a major component of community by providing a multitude of benefits including employment opportunities, economic stability, and oftentimes charitable contributions. It is our goal to foster symbiotic relationships that both help our department sustain the programs and services that resident’s expect and appreciate, as well as provide new marketing channels for your business to grow and prosper.

Kernersville Parks and Recreation is committed to working with you. If you or your business is interested in sponsoring any of our upcoming 2015 events, leagues, or programs please contact Heather Wood, Marketing & Community Relations Specialist at 336-996-6421 for more information. On behalf of the entire KPRD staff, we would like to thank again the businesses that continue to support us and allow us to offer quality events and programs for our community.

The safety of our children is something that we should always be vigilant about. As children grow and change, they require different levels of protection. November is Child Safety and Protection Month which is a good reminder for us to our check safety and protection devices and put plans in place that protect our children.

Vehicle Safety: ALL children MUST be riding in and correctly using an appropriate child safety restraint system. Children under the age of six and weighing less than 60 pounds must be in a car seat or booster seat; older children must be wearing a seat belt. Individuals that do not provide or use child restraints can be fined or even charged with child endangerment.
Safety at Home: There may be child hazards even in your own home. Avoid more common childhood injuries and accidents by following these steps.

Falls:
• Have bright lights installed on your stairs and landings.
• Keep walkways and areas near stairs free of clutter. Designate a space for your children to keep
their toys, and enlist their help when picking them up and putting them away.

Unintentional Poisoning:
• Keep cleaning supplies, medicines, and other potentially harmful substances out of reach of children.
• Use child safety locks on cabinets.
• Have the number for the Poison Control Center readily available.
• Test smoke alarms regularly.
• Hold drills with your children so they know what to do in case of fire.
• Stay by the stove when you are cooking to dissuade children from touching hot burners or open
ovens.
• Use back burners and turn pot handles towards the back of your stove.
• Keep your hot water heater set at 120⁰F.

Supervision: Children are active explorers of their environment. No matter how safe we try to keep our home, our children may find things that could potentially lead to accidents or injury. The greatest step we can take to keeping our children safe is supervising them. Adults must be protective in child safety. Consider ahead of time what dangers your child may be in, and do not wait until a dangerous situation occurs to deal with it. Think and plan ahead to keep your child safe.

Last month, Kernersville Parks and Recreation and the NCHSAA hosted the 2015 Cross Country Invitational at Ivey M. Redmon Sports Complex. There were 103 schools in attendance with runners hoping to advance to the next qualifying level. On November 7, again we will host the State meet that includes the top 16 schools that qualify from the Regional race and conference. Men and women will place in the top ten from 4A, 3A, 2A, and 1A North Carolina schools. The conferences produce an enormous economic impact on Kernersville, as the runners and their families shop and dine in local stores and restaurants.

Speaking of indoor pursuits, Kernersville Parks and Recreation and the Shepard’s Center of Kernersville will be hosting another installment of our Oil Painting for Beginners class (ages 15+) on Thursday, November 12 from 6:00-9:00 pm. The theme will be Fall Landscape and students will follow a step-by-step demonstration by the instructor that will cover the elements of composition and color values alongside new friends. We are very excited to note that Barbara Fager, class instructor, is also currently featured in Southwinds Gallery in downtown Kernersville.
Just in time for the holiday season, Kernersville Parks and Recreation invites you to give the gift of health and well-being by registering for a class for yourself or your family. Our programs promote healthy habits and provide opportunities for positive growth and life-long learning–the perfect gift for everyone you care about. Be sure to check out our upcoming winter 2016 Leisure Guide early next month to see what we have to offer and give the gift of recreation all season!