After a short one-year break, Give Kids The World has announced the return of their popular “Coasting for Kids” program, and this time, it’s bigger and better than ever!
From 2009-2015, Coasting For Kids took place at Cedar Fair parks around the country. Members of the Coaster101 team participated in 3 of these years; Nick at Cedar Point in 2009, Larry at Michigan’s Adventure in 2013, and Andrew at Carowinds in 2015. In 2017, three parks participated in a quick revival of the program: Quassy, Frontier City, and Busch Gardens Williamsburg.
But as they say, bigger is better! This year, Coasting for Kids will take place at SIXTEEN(!) parks across the country this year, with events happening from March to September. Here’s the list of parks, in order of event date!
- March 23: Busch Gardens Williamsburg
- May 4: LEGOLAND Florida
- May 11: Six Flags Darien Lake
- June 8: Quassy Amusement Park
- June 8: Sesame Place
- June 22: Six Flags Over Texas
- June 29: Silverwood
- July 13: Story Land
- July 20: Six Flags Fiesta Texas
- August 3: Indiana Beach
- August 10: Six Flags Over Georgia
- August 16: Six Flags America
- August 17: Fantasy Island
- August 17: Frontier City
- August 24: Six Flags Great Escape
- September 1: Kennywood
In the past, Coasting For Kids was designed as more of a “Coaster Marathon,” but is now more of a “fun day” at the respective parks with the added bonus of Exclusive Ride Time at many of the parks and other perks.
The Maintenance Bay of Griffon at Busch Gardens Williamsburg
Each participant is asked to raise $100 to participate in Coasting For Kids, and will receive admission to the park and a Coasting For Kids t-shirt. For those who reach higher fundraising thresholds, there are special perks at various levels. For example, at Busch Gardens Williamsburg, if you raise $250, you get a special tour that includes the maintenance bays of Griffon and Loch Ness Monster (think of it as a “Light” Version of their Coaster Insider Tour!) If you’re the top fundraiser, Verbolten will be added to that tour!
Over the years of the program, Coasting For Kids has raised approximately $650,000 for Give Kids The World Village.
“That’s an amazing figure when you really think about it,” said Steven Amos, Development Manager for Give Kids The World. “A lot of that comes not only from wish families and volunteers who participate, but from multiple coaster enthusiast groups as well. It’s something that they can all come together for and support a great cause in the process.”
Several players in the amusement industry are getting involved as well, as Vekoma has signed on as a Silver Sponsor, and Premier Rides has signed up as a Bronze Sponsor.
.@GKTWVillage and ACE thanks the 16 amazing park that have agreed to participate with us for Coasting For Kids 2019! Y'all are amazing!#ACEcares #RideWithACE #TheACEadvantage #ACEgivesBack pic.twitter.com/I404bccPSD
— American Coaster Enthusiasts (@aceonlineorg) January 19, 2019
Another added benefit of Coasting For Kids is that it gives Gives Kids The World a more “regional” footprint. While many of their fundraising events are in the immediate vicinity of their Kissimmee headquarters, the sixteen locations around the country give Give Kids The World a chance for their wish families and supporters a chance to congregate in an area that isn’t in Central Florida.
Give Kids The World Village is a 84-acre, nonprofit “storybook” resort in Central Florida. Children with life-threatening illnesses and their families are treated to week-long, cost-free vacations, complete with accommodations, donated attraction tickets, meals and more. Since 1986, Give Kids The World Village has welcomed more than 167,000 families from all 50 states and 76 countries. For more information on their mission, visit www.gktw.org.
For more information about Coasting For Kids, visit the Coasting For Kids Website, and stay tuned to Coaster101 for more information.
You mention Cedar Fair for previous years. Where are they now?