Family Fun Night Kicks Off Mesquite Days

By BOBBIE GREEN

The Progress

The Mesquite Department of Athletics and Leisure Services hosted a Free Family Fun Night at the Old Mill Ballpark on Wednesday, May 3. The event was the kick-off event to the annual 2023 Mesquite Days celebration which continued through the weekend.

This fun tradition seems to draw a larger crowd each year. The park was alive with happy faced kids. The air was full of giggles and squeals of fun.

Rec Center Assistant Director Zack Robison said, “We expect about 1,500 people. We have fifteen different game booths for the kids. The Police Department is here with their police car racing for the kids and the Fire Department is offering kids a chance to hit a target with the fire hose.”
Even Fire Chief Jayson Andrus brought his kids to spray with the fire hose.

The kids appeared to take driving the racing police cars as very serious business, as evidenced by most of their concentrated faces as they were driving.

The game booths provided kids with plenty of activities like dodge ball, a Lego table, corn hole, basketball, bean bag toss, and football toss. There were four very busy bounce houses and a mechanical bull ride. Yet with all this kids were still creating their own fun by rolling down the grassy hill around the park and other similar activities.

Most of the game booths were manned by volunteers from local non-profit organizations.
There was also plenty of fun for the adults. There was live music by Dealt-A-Straight Band. There was a raffle with 35 prizes from 20 local businesses for this event. Food trucks were on hand including Great Basin Cooking Co., Tacos & Salsa, and Fizz Bizz.

Ted and Donna Omer brought their two kids, ages 6 and 8, to the event for the first time. “This is cool!” said Donna Omer as they were standing in line for the fire hose water targeting. “The kids are having so much fun!”

Mesquite Days Parade Grand Marshall, Larry Wait was enjoying the festivities with his son AJ and councilman Wes Boger with his spouse Mekesha.
“I think Mesquite is a wonderful and great city,” Wait said. “I volunteer because I like helping people when I can. Getting chosen for Grand Marshall is quite an honor.”

City Councilman Wes Boger was present and said that he was delighted with the evening’s activities.

“Family Fun Night is a great way to kick off Mesquite Days!” Boger said. “I look forward to it every year. It’s a great event for families with kids especially, but fun for all. I like seeing the smiles on the kids’ faces. I appreciate the Fire and Rescue and the Police Department for taking time out of their schedules to be at this important event.”