On Thursday, kids of all ages were able to see a firetruck, a garbage truck, and other vehicles up close for Transportation Night. Duluth Early Childhood Family Education (ECFE) hosted the event at Denfeld High School and geared it towards kids under five.

Jen Jaros is the Early Childhood Family Education Coordinator for Duluth Public Schools. She says it can be hard for young children to meet other kids their age, so events like Transportation Night can be a chance to make new friends.

“We’re about to be kind of locked up for the winter, so on a beautiful night like this, let’s get out and talk about vehicles and talk about colors and all the things we see,” said Jaros. “It’s about language development and modeling for our kids and being part of a community.”

Little Library GO, a tow truck, rescue vehicles, RC Cars, PBS Kids’ Buddy the Dinosaur, and Smokey Bear were all featured at Transportation Night. Those who attended were also asked to give a donation to the Ronald McDonald House.

“The partnership that we have with Twin Ports Ghostbusters – they ask that we collect donations for the Ronald McDonald House. We also have families and staff who have had some up-close and personal experiences at the Ronald McDonald House. So it’s a really important organization for all of us. They do amazing things for families going through a hard time,” explained Jaros.

Jaros said that all of the schools in Minnesota have ECFE, focusing on parents as a child’s first and most important teachers.