Children climb, dig and explore at MomCo Touch a Truck

MOSES LAKE — Fire trucks, excavators, police vehicles and even an aircraft became a playground for children at MomCo’s annual Touch a Truck event Saturday morning.

“We have all new trucks this year,” said organizer Brittney Ketterer. “We have all new vendors. Our surprise is the airplane, which is a huge hit. All the kids are loving the airplane.”

The airplane in question was a glider on loan from the aviation program at Big Bend Community College. The glider was called a Rutan VariEze, said instructor Cade Levine, who brought the craft over from the college, and was designed as a kit for the end user to put together. It was by far the most popular attraction, with children lined up for a chance to sit in it.

“I was not expecting (it to be so popular),” Levine said. “They gave us a ton of room; I would have brought two planes if I’d known.”

The Rutan VariEze didn’t take up a lot of space and was very easy to transport, Levine said. The wings fold up and are held on by two easy-to-remove bolts, with two more bolts holding the front part on.

“It’s pretty easy to load up on a trailer,” Levine said.

The glider may have been a magnet, but it was far from the only attraction for curious and energetic children. There were fire trucks, police cars – including a Grant County Sheriff’s Office boat – and excavation equipment. There was also a dirt-and-gravel space with child-sized excavators and shovels. In addition, there was a row of food vendors serving tacos, coffee and more.

Adelynn Berrrett, 3, was high off the ground on a tractor while her dad Kyler Berrett making sure she didn’t take a tumble. This was his first time bringing his kids out, Kyler said.

“(They’re into) anything and everything,” he said. “They’re here for the experience, seeing what the real world is like.”

“She loves it,” said Morgan Derrington as he lifted his 19-month-old daughter River Rose down off the GCSO boat. “She liked the boat, she liked popping the balloon, but most of all she liked the gravel.”

Trooper Ellis Cuillier of the Washington State Patrol bomb squad was there to show the kids some of the equipment they use to keep things from going boom.

“Unfortunately, we don’t get to (blow things up,)” Cuillier said. “But they love the robot and they love the bomb suit.”

The Touch a Truck event is put on every year by MomCo, a faith-based support group for mothers of young children. The event is a day out for both kids and parents, but also a fundraiser for the group.

To keep young attention spans from limiting out, organizers had set up a scavenger hunt with prizes for children who could collect stamps from all the exhibits. An hour into the four-hour event, 30-40 children had already come by to redeem their sheets, volunteer Alishia Henderson said.

“It keeps kids engaged and paying attention, instead of just running everywhere,” she said.

    Fire trucks, police vehicles, heavy equipment and more are arrayed around the field behind Moses Lake Presbyterian Church for the MomCo Touch a Truck event Saturday morning.
  

    Three-year-old Adalynn Berrett takes her dad Kyler Berrett on a pretend tractor ride at the Moses Lake MomCo Touch a Truck Saturday morning.
  

    Azariah Beregovoy, 4, takes a break from climbing on heavy equipment to do some excavating of his own at Touch a Truck Saturday morning.
  

    Blaine Canales, 18 months, has her own firefighter helmet as a souvenir of Touch a Truck Saturday in Moses Lake.