Parks & Recreation set to bring the fun across Plant City.
The City of Plant City covers 30 square miles. Due to this large area, it may be difficult for parents to take their kids to a recreation facility, or to the places for play offered by city parks.
“Plant City is pretty big, and it is growing by the day,” Daisy Lumbreras, Special Events Coordinator for Plant City’s Park & Recreation Department, said. “Some people don’t have parks nearby, or rec centers, and we are trying to get everyone included.”
“In 2023, during a staff training, our Recreation team was inspired by a presentation about a mobile recreation unit launched by another agency,” Julie Garretson, Director of Parks and Recreation, said. “That led us to brainstorm how we could create something similar, using resources we already had to keep costs low. After some creative thinking, we reached out to our Fire Rescue Department to ask about a decommissioned ambulance slated for auction. With quick collaboration and support, we secured approval to transfer the vehicle to our Parks and Recreation fleet. That’s when the transformation began.”
Parks and Rec worked with a local artist to develop a vibrant custom vehicle wrap and t-shirt. The Parks team also went hands-on to renovate the inside—taking out what they didn’t want, building storage space, seating, a TV mount, and adding neon lighting. Thus, “Rec N Roll” was born.
Rec N Roll includes cornhole, a portable U-Ball/basketball, football, volleyball, and “trash pong,” a game played with basketballs and trash can-sized receptacles. In terms of less athletic games, Rec N Roll includes Uno and Bicycle card games, a quite large Connect 4, a giant Jenga, giant checkers, and a Nintendo Switch that up to eight kids can play at the same time. For the artistic kids, karaoke, and a friendship bracelet station also travel with the van. There is no cost for kids to use anything Rec N Roll offers.
So far, Rec N Roll has brought the fun to local schools and events like the Springhead Elementary Color Run Fundraiser for the transition from an elementary school to a middle school. If kids raised a certain amount of money, they were able to get Rec N Roll as a benefit. Another school reached out to get the truck for testing week as a benefit to students. It also appeared at Family Fun Day at Marie B. Ellis Park. “The kids had a lot of fun with all the games, and all the bracelet stations,” Lumbreras said. “It includes a little bit of everything—especially for those areas that don’t have anything to do. During the summer, we will see it flow through the city a little more, too. We are trying to serve more of the Plant City area. The east side of town has all the baseball fields, all the soccer fields, and all the parks. But if you go west of town, there isn’t a lot out there….It is worth it to be out there for the kids. Not everyone gets a chance to play with the different types of games that we have. So, we just want to bring out the fun and make memories for those kids.”
At this point, Rec N Roll isn’t available for individuals to book. Parks & Rec social media will list upcoming park locations Rec N Roll will visit throughout the year for the public. Inquiries should be directed to recinfo@plantcitygov.com, or people can scan the QR code on the van to learn about upcoming events where children can engage with what Rec N Roll has to offer.
