Kids fest honors Whatcom County youths

PETER JENSEN

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The 19th annual Bellingham Kids Festival honored Whatcom County youths with a fun-filled day of free food and entertainment on Saturday, Aug. 2, in Bloedel Donovan Park.

Thousands of kids enjoyed sack races, bean-bag tosses, a petting zoo and a performance by a nationally renowned magician.

"It's a day to honor Whatcom County kids," said Cori Kauk, who organized the event for the Bellingham Parks and Recreation Department. "Everything was free - it's just a day of fun in the park."

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19th Annual Kids' Fest

Kauk said the event, which used to be at Civic Stadium, continues to get bigger each year. She needed 10 more staff members to handle the extra events and booths.

The event also kicked off a campaign to get more kids health-insurance coverage.

The Washington Apple Health for Kids program had a booth and provided information to parents on how to get their kids covered.

The program is part of a statewide effort to make sure that 75,000 more kids receive health insurance by 2010, said Doug Porter, the state's Medicaid director.

James and Traci Boyd have their two sons, Tyler and Chaz, covered with health insurance through the program.

They recently moved to the area and wouldn't start receiving health insurance from James Boyd's employer until he had worked there for a year.

"I searched and searched and didn't know what to do," Traci Boyd said. "I didn't think we could get affordable health care. We just received it and it's a big relief."

The state Legislature approved funding for the efforts in its 2007 session. State Rep. Kelli Linville, D-Bellingham, attended the event and said she will work to keep it well-funded despite the projected budget shortfall that will likely put a clamp on state spending.

"Covering all kids with health care is the first step to ensuring they will be healthy and will do well in school," Linville said. "Whenever you have a shortfall it's going to be a challenge. This is a good short-term investment for a long-term payout."

Reach Peter Jensen at 715-2264 or at peter.jensen@bellinghamherald.com