KENTWOOD, Mich. — On a sunny evening, dozens of people and their dogs filed into Kellogg Woods Park, near the corner of Division Avenue and 54th Street. The spot is home to the City of Kentwood's dog park, a place that will benefit from all the people who showed up Thursday.
The occasion was "Bark For The Park." It's an annual event, now in its third year, that the city's parks and recreation department puts on to raise money that will bring upgrades to the dog park.
"We have a brand new dog water drinking fountain that we just put in this year from the funds we raised the last couple of years, and any funds raised this year, we're hoping to put into some shade sails. We need some shade in this park," said Spencer McKellar who serves as the city's lead recreation program leader.
"We have a ton of great amenities in our park systems - playgrounds, picnic shelters, and swing sets. Those are all for the humans in our community. We recognize that there's also a ton of animals, specifically dogs and pets in the household, and we want to provide a fun, safe, social space for them too. It's definitely important for them to come out and play, just like kids and people do here on our sport fields and playgrounds."
The event featured a number of local vendors and food trucks for people and their dogs to enjoy.
"We always want more of our local businesses to be highlighted here, so any businesses that see this event and think it's a cool idea, reach out early. We'd love to get you on the list for next year," McKellar said.
The event was free to attend, but donations were encouraged. If you didn't get to attend the event, but would like to help fund future upgrades at the dog park, you can donate through the city's website.
The city's next event will be the Kentwood Food Truck Festival, which runs from 11 a.m. to 8 p.m. on Saturday, June 10 in the parking lot of the Kentwood library, located at 4950 Breton Road SE.
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