Accessible afternoon lets everyone enjoy fair

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 07/06/2019 (2547 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

The children’s section at the Manitoba Summer Fair was busy on Thursday afternoon with kids and parents alike on rides — just a little bit slower than usual.

Every year, the fair opens the section specifically for children with special needs. The rides were slowed down to give people time to get on and off and staff were on hand to assist.

Jose Dominguez came with his son Matteo and rode the merry-go-round.

“It was good, he enjoys it and even I enjoyed it.”

Jose said the event was a ton of fun for his son and gave him the chance to go on rides when it’s not as busy as normal.

“We’re trying to get him on the bee (ride), but he’s a little bit scared. … The rides are awesome, but the kids get a little bit scared sometimes.”

Kids had the chance to try out almost all the rides in the children’s section, including the merry-go-round, roller-coaster, spinning swings and Speedway.

Max Twombly (Parker), who was there with his dad, Mitch Parker, got the afternoon off school to come to the fair. He said the best part is how fast and exciting the rides are.

The two had just got off the monster truck ride and they were planning on riding more, like the dragon roller-coaster and wobbly balls.

Mitch said this year was the first time the two have come to the accessible afternoon opening.

The Manitoba Summer Fair has held free accessible afternoons at the fair since 1981. The event makes it easier for kids in wheelchairs or with other special needs to take part, said Scooter Korek, North American Midway Entertainment vice-president of client relations.

“It has been a way that people with accessibility challenges can get access to our rides because we’re going to slow things down and make it so that people are helping them on the rides … in a really non-rushed and a quiet environment.”

It can be hard for families to come otherwise, having to fight through crowds or deal with the normal lights and sounds of the fair experience.

“I just think that when it’s really busy, which is the majority of times that we’re open, that maybe people would be intimidated to enjoy this experience, so we provide a quiet time where they can enjoy the experience and go at their own pace.”

Matthew Fraser, an education assistant at Riverheights School, said it’s an “extremely important event” that lets the entire community enjoy the fair.

“Kids with disabilities can often be overstimulated by lots of different variables and not having the crowds when it’s open to the public is exceptionally important for them to have the opportunity to come with like-minded, around their sense of community.”

The bottom line is about helping people have fun and to give them a chance to enjoy what the fair has to offer, Korek said.

“I see lots of smiles out here and lots of people having fun. So guess what? Mission accomplished.”

» dmay@brandonsun.com

» Twitter: @DrewMay_