Sponsored by Spire, celebrate a free day of play with The Magic House, Girl Scouts of Eastern Missouri, Forest Park Forever and dozens of community partners.

Let’s play! In celebration of National Children’s Day (and National Get Outdoors Day) The Magic House, Girl Scouts of Eastern Missouri and Forest Park Forever are hosting a free family-focused event, Play Day in the Park. The giant community-wide play date will take place on Saturday, June 10 from 10:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. at Steinberg Skating Rink in Forest Park.

Making play accessible to all kids, Play Day in the Parkis a free event encouraging families to take a break from screentime and participate in good, old-fashioned play. Children can:

• roller skate at Steinberg Skating Rink

• learn how to fish in a stocked pond with the Missouri Department of Conservation

• go on an outdoor adventure geocaching with Girl Scouts of Eastern Missouri

• create your own playground with The Magic House

• participate in adaptive sports with the Disabled Athlete Sports Association

• and much more!

Studies have shown there is a growing concern that a key component of healthy child development is disappearing from children’s lives: Play. The American Academy of Pediatrics now reports that the average child in the US spends seven hours per day inactive in front of media screens. Play helps children develop social skills, empathy, critical thinking, creativity and problem-solving skills – essential skills for life. Play Day in the Parkhopes to combat this growing trend by encouraging families to play together and to shine a light on the importance of a community-wide commitment to ensuring that play is a part of every child’s life.

Working together to build a more playful community and highlight the importance of play in children’s lives, over twenty local St. Louis organizations will be onsite providing hands-on play activities for children: The Bubble Bus, City of St. Louis Recreation Division, Disabled Athlete Sports Association, Forest Park Forever, Gateway Region YMCA, Girl Scouts of Eastern Missouri, Girls Inc., Great Rivers Greenway, Greater St. Louis Area Council, Boy Scouts, The Magic House, Missouri Department of Conservation, Missouri Historical Society, The Muny, National Park Service at Gateway Arch National Park, Nine Network, Ready Readers, Saint Louis Art Museum, Saint Louis Science Center, The Sheldon Arts Foundation, St. Louis Chess Club & Scholastic Center, St. Louis Cricket Club, St. Louis Public Library, Saint Louis Zoo, STAGES St. Louis, Steinberg Skating Rink and YWCA Metro St. Louis.

Food trucks and food concessions will be available at the event site, but families are also encouraged to picnic in the Park. The event will take place rain or shine.

Play Day in the Park is a collaborative event promoting and supporting the power of play. The event is sponsored by Spire and is free for all families to attend. For up-to-date information on Play Day in the Park, please go to magichouse.org/playdayinthepark/ or visit the Facebook event page fb.me/e/AtvfomkE.

“When we treat children’s play as seriously as it deserves, we are helping them feel the joy that’s to be found in the creative spirit. It’s the things we play with the people who help us play that make a great difference in our lives.” – Fred Rogers

Leadership Quotes

The Magic House

“Children learn through play, yet research shows that they are not getting nearly enough opportunities for hands-on, exploratory free play,” said Beth Fitzgerald, President of The Magic House.  “As a children’s museum, we feel a responsibility to be an advocate for play. This summer is a perfect time for encouraging families to take time to play and in the process enjoy the many benefits associated with it from physical well-being to social, emotional and cognitive development.”

Forest Park Forever

“Forest Park is the perfect setting to celebrate National Children’s Day and the importance of accessible play for all children,” said Lesley S. Hoffarth, President and Executive Director of Forest Park Forever. “In addition to the setting for Play Day in the Park at Steinberg, Forest Park offers three playgrounds and the 17-acre Anne O’C. Albrecht Nature Playscape, each of which are family-friendly ways for our community to enjoy the Best City Park in the U.S.”

City of St. Louis Parks Division

“National Children’s Day provides an excellent opportunity for children to come and enjoy beautiful Forest Park with a variety of exciting activities being offered on Saturday June 10th,” said Greg Hayes, Director of Parks, Recreation & Forestry. “Our invaluable local organizations will ensure that the Play Day in the Park event is one that will be fun for all and we are certainly appreciative of all of the extensive planning work they have provided.”

About the Presenter

About Spire

At Spire Inc. (NYSE: SR), we believe energy exists to help make people's lives better. It's a simple idea, but one that's at the heart of our company. Every day we serve 1.7 million homes and businesses making us one of the largest publicly traded natural gas companies in the country. We help families and business owners fuel their daily lives through our gas utilities serving Alabama, Mississippi and Missouri. Our natural gas-related businesses include Spire Marketing, Spire STL Pipeline and Spire Storage. We are committed to transforming our business through growing organically, investing in infrastructure, and advancing through innovation. Learn more at SpireEnergy.com.

About The Magic House, St. Louis Children’s Museum 
The Magic House is a not-for-profit participatory museum that provides hands-on learning experiences that spark imagination, pique curiosity, enhance creativity and develop problem-solving skills within a place of beauty, wonder, joy, and magic. Serving more than 550,000 visitors annually, The Magic House opened in 1979 and has 55,000 square feet of hands-on exhibits. In 2019, the Museum opened an all-new satellite makerspace in the City of St. Louis on Delmar Boulevard, located between the Central West End and the Delmar Loop.

We’re Girl Scouts of Eastern Missouri

Girl Scouts bring their dreams to life and work together to build a better world. Through programs from coast to coast, Girl Scouts of all backgrounds and abilities can be unapologetically themselves as they discover their strengths and rise to meet new challenges—whether they want to climb to the top of a tree or the top of their class, lace up their boots for a hike or advocate for climate justice, or make their first best friends. Backed by trusted adult volunteers, mentors, and millions of alums, Girl Scouts lead the way as they find their voices and make changes that affect the issues most important to them. To join us, volunteer, reconnect, or donate, visit girlscoutsem.org.

About Forest Park Forever
Founded in 1986, Forest Park Forever is a private nonprofit conservancy that works in partnership with the City of St. Louis and the Department of Parks, Recreation and Forestry to restore, maintain and sustain Forest Park, as one of America’s great urban public parks for a diverse community of visitors to enjoy, now and forever. Forest Park Forever has led major fundraising efforts to restore many landmark destinations in Forest Park, including the Emerson Grand Basin, the Boathouse and the Jewel Box.

Today, Forest Park Forever maintains Forest Park with the City of St. Louis; raises funds for and helps manage capital restoration projects called for in the Forest Park Master Plan; delivers experiential educational opportunities to teachers, students and adults; and provides information and guides for the 15.5 million annual visitors to the Park, which in 2023 was voted Best City Park in the United States for the second consecutive year. Not part of the Zoo-Museum Tax District, Forest Park Forever is supported by private donations from throughout the community, including its 7,000 members, 1,100 volunteers and many leading community and corporate partners.

Connect with us at facebook.com/forestparkforever, twitter.com/forestpark4ever and instagram.com/forestparkforever.