As I arrived at the Dragonfly picnic, I had no idea what to expect. The one thing I knew for sure was there would be water balloons, lots of them. To my surprise, this picnic seemed more like a festival. There were inflatables, face painting, and even a video game truck!
As families arrived they greeted each other with hugs and huge smiles proving that The Dragonfly Foundation really was one big family. By the looks on their faces, the kids loved every minute of this picnic. It was a time for families to reconnect and for the kids to let loose for a couple hours.
The kids stormed the inflatables and video game truck while waiting for the infamous water balloon fight to start. Nothing was going to stop the water balloon fight from happening, not even the chilly temperatures! Thousands of water balloons were available to the kids and before we knew it, the first round of balloons were gone and the kids were soaked! Laughter and screams filled the air as more water balloons were distributed so the fight could continue.
As I stood by the inflatable slide watching the water balloon fight, I saw nothing but pure joy. These kids were having the time of their lives. They didn’t care that is wasn’t warm outside. They didn’t care that their face paint from an hour ago was dripping all over them. They didn’t care that their best friend had thrown a water balloon straight at them. For these three hours, the kids had no worries except dodging water balloons.
This is what The Dragonfly Foundation is all about. Finding a way to help them forget about their daily struggles by letting them have fun and just be kids. I will never forget all the joy and happiness these kids showed me while volunteering at this picnic!
The Dragonfly Foundation truly appreciates all the hard work from our volunteers! This picnic wouldn’t have worked without you! Also we would like to thank all of our sponsors: Alleen Company, Cincinnati Circus Co., Fabulous Faces by Jen, Kona Ice, Party Podz, Peoples First Savings Bank, Stonelick Township Fire Department, Whole Foods Mason, Todd & Christy Stine and the Dragonfly Express, and JTM Food Group!
–Emma Green, Summer 2014 Intern