GOOD NEWS: Charleston to host 14th annual First Day Festival

The City of Charleston will host the 14^th annual First Day Festival from 1 p.m. to 4 p.m. Aug. 14 at Liberty Square at the S.C. Aquarium and the Charleston Maritime Center. The First Day Festival is a celebration of education and provides children and families with information on educational services in the community, as well as a fun day together.

There will be free boat rides, free admission to the aquarium and Fort Sumter museum, health food, a Kids Zone, free school supplies and $1 parking.

New to the festival this year is the Free Farmers Market. Lowcountry Food Bank will provide bags to families to walk through and pick out fresh fruits and vegetables to take home for free. There will be volunteers to answer questions and to teach children about the flavors and benefits of each of the different fruits and vegetables.

The first day of school in Berkeley and Charleston counties is Aug. 15.  Charleston Mayor John Tecklenburg is asking parents to demonstrate their support for their children’s education by taking them to school on the first day. City employees who have school-age children will be given two hours off to take their children to school on the first day. Tecklenburg also encourages other businesses to give employees time to take their children to school.

In other Good News:

Library’s back-to-school carnival.  Your kids (and you) can celebrate the resumption of school at its Back to School Carnival, which will be held from 3 p.m. to 5 p.m. on Aug. 18 at the Main Library in Charleston.  There will be games, prizes and treats.  Summer Reading participants are encourage to wear their medals to get special prizes.

Magnolia promotes dog adoptions.  Magnolia Plantation and Gardens, considered one of America’s most dog-friendly destinations, has partnered with Lowcountry Dog magazine to offer free annual memberships to families that adopt a dog in August and September.  Five animal shelters and ten animal rescue programs are participating in this expanded effort to help find a home for abandoned dogs.  For information about dogs that are available for adoption follow this link, http://bit.ly/2ahbERa.