This relatively (in kid years) “old photo” is from the second annual Touch a Truck held in the parking lot of First Baptist Church of Waynesburg, way, way back in 2012.
Organizer Dawn Mankey doesn’t know the name of the little boy with the missing front teeth. (If you recognize your seven-year-old self, please let us know!) She found this photo on a camera card that was so old it was hard to get the photos to open past thumbnail size. Luckily, this one did open so here’s a snapshot of childhood past to chuckle over and remember—ten plus years is another lifetime when it comes to kids.
“That’s my daughter Gina in the Wonder Bread costume. She was 11 years old!” Mankey exclaimed when she saw it.
Touch a Truck is one of her favorite church projects, thanks to Pastor Ed Pierce. “He took his grand kids to one in Ohio and he said they really liked it—they got to honk the horns! He asked me did I think we could do it here at First Baptist?”
Heck yeah!
That first year, “we had 20 vehicles and popcorn and I didn’t take any photos. I was too busy running around!”
Touch a Truck lets kids meet the real life super heroes who drive the trucks, ambulances, police cars and utility vehicles that come each year to educate and entertain. Kids are invited to climb aboard, blow horns and see the world from the ladder of a fire truck, from the top of an earthmover, from the cockpit of a plane. There are free T-shirts and lunches, health screenings and games to play and plenty of costumed culture icons to pal around with.
Fantasy blurs lines with reality at Touch a Truck but the truth is – the machines that keep our society running are here for real and there will be some kids who will grow up to keep them on the road. What better way to feel the connection of a possible career than to touch it?
This second year Touch a Truck had doubled in size, with more vehicles and more things to see and do. Community human services agencies are part of the outreach act, with slushy machines, games to play and on the spot checkups. Over the years it will keep growing.
Cornerstone Care’s dental mobile unit always comes. “I just love them!” Mankey said.
Touch a Truck is also a great chance to network with the companies and organizations that participate. A note to families: event regular West Penn Power offers free tuition to become a lineman.
And for kids who dream of flying high, Max Loughman of SOAR brings a little Cessna with its wings detached, along with the Plane Train that chugs around the tarmac during Airport Days in August.
Like I said, in kid time, this is an old photo.
Gina Mankey outgrew her Wonder Bread suit and is now working for Cornerstone Care as a nutritionist, ready to help build a culture of healthy lifestyles by doing community outreach into schools focusing on nutrition.
But Touch a Truck is still truckin’ for a new generation of little dreamers. Stop by on September 30 and see – and touch for yourself.
Don’t forget to take plenty of snapshots. These are the good old days!
For more information or to get involved with Touch a Truck, call First Baptist Church 724-627-6444 weekdays 9a.m. – 2:30 p.m.