Kids get to climb on heavy equipment, meet emergency responders at CASA event
Families gather around a Kingston Forty Fort ladder truck at the Touch-A-Truck and Health Fair.
Sydney Allabaugh | Times Leader
Firefighter/paramedic Richard Smith speaks with Zamari Keita, 3, of Hanover Twp., as he sits in a fire truck.
Sydney Allabaugh | Times Leader
Keegan Kazokas, of Dallas, speaks with Elliot Kazokas, 3, as he sits behind the wheel of a hauler truck.
Sydney Allabaugh | Times Leader
Kennedy Farrington, 8, of Kingston, climbs into a bucket loader at the Touch-A-Truck and Health Fair.
Sydney Allabaugh | Times Leader
Volunteer firefighter Kevin Quinn helps Zamari Keita, 3, of Hanover Twp., into the back of a fire truck.
Sydney Allabaugh | Times Leader
Mason Farrington, 6, of Kingston, sits in a bucket loader as Kennedy Farrington, 8, climbs up to meet him.
Sydney Allabaugh | Times Leader
Elliot Kazokas, 3, of Dallas, sits behind the wheel of a Luzerne County Transportation Authority bus.
Sydney Allabaugh | Times Leader
KINGSTON — Three-year-old Elliot Kazokas, of Dallas, explored emergency and construction vehicles Saturday at CASA of Wyoming Valley’s third annual Touch-A-Truck and Health Fair at the Friedman Jewish Community Center.
He joined dozens of other children who climbed on trucks, honked horns, and met first responders.
“A lot of kids just have an interest in big trucks,” said Richard Smith, a firefighter/paramedic for the Kingston Forty Fort Fire Department. “They get to see them, touch them, sit in them.”
Smith said it could guide kids to a future career. He said his own interest in firefighting began in childhood when he would explore fire trucks with his father, who was also a firefighter.
“That’s how I got interested,” Smith said. “I think it’s cool for the kids to come by and do that.”
Elliot attended with his mother, Keegan Kazokas, of Dallas, who said she brought him because of his love for “big trucks, police officers, and firemen.”
“And I was interested in the health fair too, to see what the community has,” she said.
This year’s event introduced a Family Health Fair featuring local hospitals, health care providers, and community service organizations offering free health education and screenings.
Ryan Schofield, the executive director of CASA of Wyoming Valley, said the event also offered ice cream, face painting, and a bounce house for kids.
“And then for us, it’s a chance to be in the community and talk about the great work that our volunteers do and raise a little bit of money for that work,” Schofield said.
Former CASA of Wyoming Valley intern Zorie Barnett, of Hanover Twp., brought Zamari Keita, 3, to support the hosting organization.
“I got to see a couple of the amazing things that CASA does for the children,” Barnett said. “This is one of many.”
CASA of Wyoming Valley is a nonprofit organization dedicated to advocating for abused and neglected children in the dependency court systems of Luzerne and Wyoming Counties. Schofield said they’re looking for more volunteers.
“There are nearly 400 children in the dependency system between Luzerne and Wyoming Counties, and we’re only able to serve a fraction of them,” he said. “We are always looking for new folks to come up and step up.”
Those interested in volunteering can visit luzernecasa.org. The next training class begins in the fall.
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