No, U.S. first lady Melania Trump isn’t coming to the Anti-Bullying Day event, 10 a.m. until 2 p.m. July 27 at Mill Creek Regional Park, but Georgia first lady Marty Kemp might.
Either way, the event will definitely feature a dunk tank, bouncy houses and other fun activities for children, teens and families, plus speakers and exhibits with anti-bullying messages and info, said citizen organizer Jeff Klare.
“It’s going to be a pretty exciting day,” he said. “We’ve got Gus from Georgia Southern coming out, we’ve got Freedom the eagle to fly around Mill Creek Park, and we’ve got K-9 units coming out, so it’s going to be a full day.”
Gus, of course, is the GS Eagles costumed mascot, while Freedom is a famous, real bald eagle from the university’s Center for Wildlife Education. The police dogs and human officers who work with them will be directed to the park by the Georgia Police K9 Foundation, which is based in Statesboro.
Some items donated by the Walmart distribution center will be raffled off, Klare said, to benefit the K9 Foundation and also the You-Nique Mentoring Program for young women, which is operated by Joyce Simmons. The Statesboro High School Anti-Bullying Club and Statesboro Community Youth Network are slated to have booths at the event.
Clear pouches containing back-to-school items, such as pencils, erasers and crayons, will be given free to school-age children, Klare said.
Cotton candy, popcorn and snow cones will be served, and other food will be available from vendors.
Official backing
Back in February, Statesboro City Council by a 5-0 vote approved city participation in the event, and Mayor Jonathan McCollar signed invitations to the first ladies. Chairman Roy Thompson of the Bulloch County Board of Commissioners also issued a proclamation of support.
McCollar later received notice from the White House that Mrs. Trump had to decline the invitation, but Klare and Statesboro District 5 Councilman Derek Duke said there were phone calls indicating that Mrs. Kemp, wife of Gov. Brian Kemp, was interested. City officials have asked Klare for written confirmation, and he said he hopes to have an email from Kemp’s office next week.
Bulloch County Sheriff Noel Brown will be one of the featured speakers, to talk about safety and starting the school year, Klare said.
An overarching theme, he said, will be for everyone “to be on the same page,” in regard to protecting young people from bullying.
“It ain’t like when we were little kids,” Klare said. “With Facebook and all the social media stuff, you can get bullied at 2 o’clock in the morning. So we need to be able to make their school days a little bit brighter.”
Klare and his wife, chiropractor Dr. Amy Kitching, own Southern Chiropractic & Statesboro Thrives Wellness Center. Klare also operates Be a Hero-Hire a Hero, a business assisting employers in hiring veterans, and is employment director for the United States Veterans Chamber of Commerce.
Klare said he hopes to start the day with a welcome breakfast for Kemp with city and county officials at the chiropractic and wellness center building, 116 Savannah Ave.
In fact, this will be Klare’s second annual Anti-Bullying Day event. The first was held in May 2018, but city officials suggested scheduling this one close to the start of the new school year, which is Aug. 1 for Bulloch County Schools students.
The idea of inviting Kemp and Trump originated with Councilman Duke, who supports the Anti-Bullying Day program whether it draws one first lady or none.
“Jeff has worked very hard to pull in sponsors for this and make it an event that the kids are going to enjoy…,” Duke said, “and hopefully it will do exactly what it’s meant to do, make everybody aware that being kind is really what it’s all about and resisting the urge to tease and do other things that often end up as bullying.”
SFD-SPD Block Party
The anti-bullying festival is one of two Statesboro events featuring public safety themes and activities for children and families planned for that same Saturday. The Statesboro Fire Department and the Statesboro Police Officers Foundation will host a Public Safety Block Party for 3 p.m. to 6 p.m., also July 27, with the street to be closed between the fire station and police headquarters at 24 and 25 West Grady Street.
More about that event, featuring food and music and culminating in a water balloon fight with children joining the police and fire department teams, will appear in a separate story.
Herald reporter Al Hackle may be reached at (912) 489-9458.