PlayStreets Help Get Children and Families Outside for Summer Fun

Free community events in South Side and Linden neighborhoods encourage outdoor play and social interaction.

May 10, 2023

(COLUMBUS, Ohio) – Children and families are invited to get outdoors and get active this summer with the return of PlayStreets, free community events for children and their families featuring food, entertainment, and a place to play.

PlayStreets events – a collaboration between Nationwide Children’s Hospital’s Healthy Neighborhoods Healthy Families initiative, community partners and event sponsor Bread Financial – promote health and wellness through outdoor play and social interaction. The events, which began in 2019, return on select Saturdays in May through August in the South Side and Linden communities. More than 1,660 people attended PlayStreets events in 2022. Food and entertainment will include pizza, face painting and a rotating lineup of food trucks, live music, and special activities including petting zoos, inflatables and more.

“PlayStreets helps foster connections between neighbors and gives children a place to have fun and meet new friends,” said Nick Jones, vice president of community wellness at Nationwide Children’s. “We know that physical activity and social connections are important for children’s health and well-being. PlayStreets help provide a way to help kids be active in the summer months when they’re not in school and may not have access to a safe place to play.”

Locations, dates, and entertainment include:

South Side

  • Where: In front of The Residences at Career Gateway, 755 E. Whittier St.
  • When: 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. select Saturdays in May through August
  • Schedule*:
    • May 20 – Games and activities; Chilljoy frozen treats truck
    • June 17 – Petting zoo; Johnson ice cream truck
    • July 8 – Face painting; Kona Ice shaved ice truck
    • July 22 – Inflatables; Chilljoy frozen treats truck
    • August 12 – Live music; Little Ladies Soft Serve truck
    • August 26 – Petting zoo with camel
  • Admission: Free

Linden

  • Where: On Chittenden Avenue, next to the Linden Fresh Market, 1464 Cleveland Ave.
  • When: 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. select Saturdays in May through August
  • Schedule*:
    • May 13 – Games and activities, Chilljoy frozen treats truck
    • June 3 – Petting zoo; Johnson ice cream truck
    • July 1 – Face painting; Kona Ice shaved ice truck
    • July 15 – Inflatables; Chilljoy frozen treats truck
    • August 5 – Live music; Little Ladies Soft Serve truck
    • August 19 – Petting zoo with camel
  • Admission: Free

*Activities and vendors subject to change; event is weather dependent

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About Nationwide Children's Hospital

Named to the Top 10 Honor Roll on U.S. News & World Report’s 2023-24 list of “Best Children’s Hospitals,” Nationwide Children’s Hospital is one of America’s largest not-for-profit free-standing pediatric health care systems providing unique expertise in pediatric population health, behavioral health, genomics and health equity as the next frontiers in pediatric medicine, leading to best outcomes for the health of the whole child. Integrated clinical and research programs, as well as prioritizing quality and safety, are part of what allows Nationwide Children’s to advance its unique model of care. Nationwide Children’s has a staff of more than 14,000 that provides state-of-the-art wellness, preventive and rehabilitative care and diagnostic treatment during more than 1.7 million patient visits annually. As home to the Department of Pediatrics of The Ohio State University College of Medicine, Nationwide Children’s physicians train the next generation of pediatricians and pediatric specialists. The Abigail Wexner Research Institute at Nationwide Children’s Hospital is one of the Top 10 National Institutes of Health-funded free-standing pediatric research facilities. More information is available at NationwideChildrens.org.