New West residents can get in touch with their creative sides at Hammer Time.
The Spare Parts Adventure Society is holding Hammer Time!, a pop-up fundraiser on Friday, April 27 at 7:30 p.m. at River Market. Proceeds will help the society bring more pop-up playground events to New Westminster’s parks and events.
“The purpose of Spare Parts is to teach kids independence, the ability to think freely. It’s a chance to take risks and to try new things without being afraid that they might fail. Too much of our society is product-based. They go to school, they produce a piece of art – the piece of art needs to look like the teacher has done it, etc.,” said Alice Cavanagh of the Spare Parts Adventure Society. “With Spare Parts Adventure they don’t have to produce anything in particular so they can spend a lot of time just enjoying the process of creating without really having to achieve anything.”
Dedicated to offering children and youth access to free, child-driven educational opportunities, Spare Parts Adventure holds workshops and day activities where kids build their own playgrounds using raw materials such as rope, tarps, PVC pipe, wood, tires and other items that help a child’s imagination to flourish. Since 2016 the group has put on workshops for youth in various New Westminster neighbourhoods, helping them to develop self-reliance by taking risks and experience active play in barrier-free environments while developing their problem-solving and teamwork skills.
Cavanagh said the society has held seven Spare Parts pop-up events in the last two years and the events have been well attended, even drawing people from outside New Westminster.
With parents often telling organizers that their kids have a load of fun building and creating at Spare Parts Adventure pop-up playground, the society has decided to give adults a chance to get involved; Hammer Time includes a building contest where attendees are invited to use spare parts and their imaginations and creativity to build something exciting, with prizes being awarded to the best creations.
“We are going to let the parents have a round of building and see what they come up with,” Cavanagh said. “We’d love to see everybody there.”
Hammer Time also features a silent auction with more than 20 items donated by local companies, as well as entertainment offerings in Metro Vancouver.
Hammer Time! tickets are $20 per person and are available at Eventbrite.com (search for Hammer Time). More information about Spare Parts Adventure can be found on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/sparepartsadventure/
