FLAGLER COUNTY, Fla. (April 21, 2023) – Now in it’s fourteenth year, the Kids Ocean Day Florida event, hosted by the Friends of A1A Scenic & Historic Coastal Byway, continues to provide students across the region with a fun, educational experience.
Working closely with state parks and locations along the A1A scenic byway spanning Flagler and St. Johns counties, Kids Ocean Day Florida offers an opportunity for students attending a Title One school to experience an educational field trip at no cost to their families or the school district.
Participating organizations and agencies such as the Flagler Turtle Patrol, the Florida State Parks, WaterSafe, Inc., Flagler Sportfishing Club, and the Coastal Conservation Assocation are among those who presenting educational programming this designed to help build awareness for conservation and environmental stewardship in addition to practical safety awareness like water safety.
“Kids Ocean Day gave us the opportunity to educate the students about beach safety, specifically what the different beach warning flags mean and what to do if they ever get caught in a rip current. Living in Florida, we are blessed to be surrounded by water, but it’s important to know the dangers it brings and what the signs of drowning look like,” said WaterSafe, Inc. executive director Brielle Goldberg.
“This is one of our organization’s most important events from an education standpoint as it helps make the connection between personal responsibility and environmental stewardship,” said Friends of A1A President Bill McClure.
“We appreciate the support of our stakeholders to be able to provide this service to our community each year.”
Flagler Sportfishing Club has added their community outreach program ‘Kids4Reel’ to the district’s opportunities to engage students, and club president Adam Morley said they were happy to help introduce the sport to the next generation.
“As a captain and avid angler, I believe it’s important to get our youth outside and around the water,” said Morley, who also took the time to talk with students about the manatees that made an appearance during the event along the Intracoastal Waterway.
“Kids Ocean Day Florida is a great opportunity for kids to do just that and the Flagler Sportfishing Club was proud to lead the kids’ casting clinic. Hopefully some of those kids will get hooked on the sport.”
Kids Ocean Day Florida is funded by private donations and fundraising through the Friends of A1A to cover the cost of the educational experience. The event is scheduled annually the day before Earth Day to tie into environmental education.
