Region 5: Metropolitan Park, Jacksonville, Florida
Events Dates and Times
All times are local to event. Visit the colorful Welcome Center on grounds, for more information, and any additional activities, where you will also find the visiting reps from each of our seven great Regional Friends:
- July 23rd, Friday Morning: General Setup
- July 23rd, Friday Noon-9pm: Early Bird Festival Activities
- July 24th, Saturday Morning: Return Setup
- July 24th, Saturday 9am-9pm: Full Open Festival Activities
- July 25th, Parents Day Morning: Return Setup
- July 25th, Parents Day Noon-8pm: Full Open Festival Activities
Expected Event Highlights
The following are among the several more major features and highlights expected at each of the seven regional ParentStock2010 events. The full weekend schedule is planned for posting here by Independence Day:
- Kids eat FREE! Children twelve years old and under. One free meal per day per child. Handstamps will be used to mark free meals on their hands. All courtesy of the good folks at Feeding America and the grace of many attending churches.
- Several U.S. Senators and Reps SPEAKING! Provided courtesy of the strong folks at ParentalRights.org and their helpers. Also, some of the event Mayors, City Council Members, and at least one Governor have already either confirmed their attendance or have indicated their same intent. Expect even more by then!
- Professional LIVE entertainment all weekend! In addition to the local talent that signs up to get seen and noticed, rumor has it that the regional events will be blessed by several surprise musical appearances, courtesy of K-LOVE Radio.
- FREE booth, table, other display for your group! Total space is limited per each regional event grounds, so get your spot reserved now, before they are all taken by other family-friendly entities. Merely bring your own stuff - that's it!
- Live, on-the-scene radio broadcasting! Again, thank and celebrate the good folks at K-LOVE Radio, and come out and say hello to the anchors while you're at it, and you may even get spot-broadcasted during on-the-scene live reports!
- An ongoing variety of happenings for all! Along with the main stage will be seven different speaking and seminar "zones" spaced apart, one for each of the seven general Family subject areas. (Please see the Speaking/Seminar form for details.) And, don't forget about all the food, the music, and all the displays!
- Interactive simulcast to the other events! In addition, at each big regional ParentStock2010 event there will also be an interactive display area, courtesy of the good folks at iVisit, and their superior media-sharing and conferencing tools.
Jacksonville Event Info and Links
In keeping with the goals of the National Parents Day Council, but also enhancing those goals with creating ways to meet daily needs of today's parents and families, the regional events are expecting many fine churches from over three dozen of the largest Christian denominations in America, area Fortune 500 and more businesses, interested local nonprofits, and corresponding government officials and entities, as well as family organizations, talented entertainers, and various people and groups to all come together, and even to be presenters, by speaking or providing seminars.
It's all about Parents Day, remember, and the irreplaceable importance of parents in the raising and guidance of our Nation's children to become healthy, happy, and successful Americans of tomorrow. Bring your support for today's Parenting needs.
Come meet special guests from our anchoring Regional Friend at the Jacksonville event, AAA Motor Club, as well as visiting representatives from the other Regional Friends linked on the left side of this page. As just a small sampling of the many cordially invited within the Jacksonville metro, the following provides a few hints:
| Government Officials: | Area Large Employers: | Selected Nonprofits: |
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» Governor Charlie Crist, First Lady Carole, and their family » Lt. Governor Kottkamp, wife Cyndie, and their family » Atty General Bill McCollum, wife Ingrid, and their family » Mayor John Peyton, wife Kathryn, and their family » City Council Members, and their spouses and families » plus even more! |
» Mayo Clinic Jacksonville » CitiCards » Merrill Lynch » St Vincent's Medical Center » University of North Florida » Fidelity National » Kelley-Clarke » Jacksonville Elec. Authority » Johnson & Johnson Vision Care Inc. (Vistakon) » plus even more! |
» The Boselli Foundation » Dignity U Wear Foundation » EPIC Surf Ministries » HabiJax » Family Promise of JAX » StandUp For Kids » Character Counts! » Learn to Read » Angelwood, Inc. » Junior Achievement » plus even more! |
Because the event facilities have been graciously extended by local government in honor and spirit of the law, we are likewise blessed to offer everyone no charge for admission, plus no charge for any church, business, nonprofit, or other organization to come on down, and bring their own table, booth, or other display, merchandise, fundraiser, or some other interactive experience to engage the general public in. All that is required is the quick registration of your group, using the simple online form.
Don't miss out! Get yourself or your group registered today for this fantastic event!
Jacksonville Travel Info and Links
So you can plan a great time at Metropolitan Park, Riverwalk, Friendship Fountain, and local hotspot Landing, here are links to Jacksonville International Airport and Amtrak, which uses the local station to connect with the metro bus, skyway, trolley and shuttle system, known as JTA. The Greyhound bus lines serve the area. Looking for a nearby hotel? For your address, use 1410 Gator Bowl Blvd, Jacksonville, FL 32202 in Orbitz, Hotels.com, or other fav search.
However, you might find - for a group - that choosing to book a rental house, condo, corporate suite, or villa is actually less expensive than using hotels. To help you out quickly, here are links to several online reservation systems for getting such rentals, in alpha order: [1], [2], [3], [4], [5], [6], [7], [8], [9], [10], [11], [12], and [13].
One of the most convenient ways to save money while traveling is to connect and share with fellow travelers heading into the event, having either four passengers to a car, or six in a minivan, to maximize gas savings per person. This usually can make it easier to get around once arrived, but check ahead for any overnight parking fees.
You can coordinate rideshare options via people in AL, FL, GA, MS, NC, SC and TN who are coming, your friends, family, co-workers, or use sites like this, this or these. If your group is large, consider bus charter from BusRates.com, UMA, IMG, or NMN.
Get the Gear for Jacksonville!
Display your support for Parents by getting the gear for the ParentStock 2010 main event at Jacksonville. Also, here is a link to the various graphic sizes and file formats of the Jacksonville ParentStock image, so you can spread the word quickly out to social networks and your friends!
The good cause for restoring and protecting the American Family desperately needs your help, so tell as many different people, organizations, churches, government officials, and businesses that you possibly can, and as soon as you can :)
Don't Forget!
Don't hesitate to promote requesting of Parents Day Proclamations from your local government officials, and consider who should likely be nominated for your own local business, organization, or any other local circle's Parents of the Year 2010 award.
Note: This website is under constant construction. So, please don't hesitate to come check back often for important updates, like any new events being planned in your local area.