By Judy Reed

Post photo by Judy Reed

The secret is out—WOOD TV8’s Maranda is bringing her park party back to Cedar Springs on June 24! And not only is she bringing it back, the park party will be the kickoff event for Maranda’s summer full of fun!

Maranda will once again rock six parks throughout West Michigan in bigger and better ways than ever before. Working in conjunction with local parks and recreation departments and city officials, Park Parties will go to strategic geographic locations based on financial needs.

“I’m thrilled that we are once again able to offer Park Parties to families in West Michigan. I know many appreciate the fact that it’s a day of free fun with no worries of cost or commitments,” said Maranda.

The first Maranda Park Party here was in 2008. “She has some staple communities that she goes to every year, and some that she rotates to,” explained Amanda Gerhardt, with Cedar Springs Area Parks and Recreation. “To have her back a second time is a true honor. They had such a great time in 2008 that they wanted to come back again.”

Gerhardt said that a lot of the things they did in 2008 would be the same. It will be held on the Cedar Springs Public School grounds near Cedar View Elementary; there will be free parking at Beach, Cedar Trails and the High School with a shuttle to the party; there will be free lunches, and lots of fun!  Maranda’s staff and the Cedar Springs Area Parks and Rec planning committee will work on finalizing many of the details, such as coordinating with local organizations, getting volunteers to work the party and marketing. More details will be announced about the party this spring.

For the past 16 years, Maranda has hosted free Park Parties around West Michigan. The concept is simple, everyone’s invited and everything is free. In 2009, over 40,000 kids and families attended the Park Parties and enjoyed an afternoon of fun in their own neighborhood.