The last gasp — well more accurately the last wet, wild laugh — of summer in Gresham was borne of a childlike desire for a good old fashioned water balloon fight.
“At first it was just going to be for our team, out on Main Avenue or something, but the more people heard they wanted to join in,” said Amee Curtis, creative director of the SDF Collective. “So we decided to open it up and do something special for Gresham.”
That mindset is what makes Splash Day so special. The new annual tradition, which only got bigger and better in its sophomore year, not only brings together beaming kids, but is a chance for adults and first responders to embrace their own inner child for some no-strings-attached fun.
“There is no purpose today other than fun, it’s not about raising money or advocating for something,” Curtis said. “Just listening to the kids and the adoration they have toward the officers and firefighters is special.”
“I think the adults have as much, if not more, fun that the kids,” she added.
2024 Splash Day, hosted by The SDF Collective, ran noon to 4 p.m. Thursday, Aug. 15, at the Arts Plaza, 401 N.E. Second St. The free community event is all about celebrating summer with water battles, bounce house, frozen treats, giveaways and games, and live reggae music from CoLoSo.
“You’ve got to play some island music on Splash Day,” the band called out.
There is a roped-off battle arena, with inflatable covers and refill tanks donated by Burns Feed Store. Kids six and up got water guns to use, as well as safety glasses to protect them during the frenetic, wet combat.
“They have been talking about this for weeks,” said one grandmother, who brought a duo whose parents had to work.
Many make fast new friends — you need someone to watch your back out on the battlefield. For younger siblings there were all those other activities, as well as the Gresham Splash Pad.
“Walking up to the plaza, hearing the music and laughter and it’s the middle of the day, you realize this is just the best place to live,” said City Councilor Janine Gladfelter.
The capper is the battle between Gresham Police and Fire.
The tools: water guns, buckets and team tactics. The help: cackling, beaming kids who got to see first responders in a new light while choosing which “team” to back, chanting their support from packed sidelines. The stakes: bragging rights.
“I better not pick a side,” Councilor Gladfelter deftly said.
For the second-straight year Gresham Police claimed victory in the battle.
Fire was disappointed their strategy didn’t pan out. The plan was to bring one of the fire engines to utilize the hose to spray the officers, but they all got tied up on calls, leaving a somewhat outnumbered batch of firefighters.
“We had to defend our title,” said Police Chief Travis Gullberg with a laugh. “Though I’ve been careful not to jinx anything, we have been downplaying it for the past few weeks.”
After the initial bout between first responders, all those kids got to run out and join in the fun. At that point any alliances went out the window, the children targeted all adults alike.
“The kids won,” the officers and firefighters agreed.
At Splash Day there were booths from Ziply Fiber, Opdahl Chiropractic and Regenerative Medicince, and U.S. World Class Taekwondo. Modern Bounce had two bouncy houses inflated, with lots of bubbles, and Second Star Character had a meet and greet.
While the SDF Collective is the major force behind the outing, it is a large group of sponsors that make it special. Beyond those helming booths, it is also the Gresham Center for the Arts Foundation and Soundguy Productions.
It’s not really monetary backing, but the in-kind support needed for a free community outing.
“After the initial investment last year, this event effectively costs nothing but time, love and patience to bring together,” Curtis said. “The SDF Collective wants to be a resource for the community, which means doing things like this.”
And the plan is for Splash Day to continue being an annual tradition in Gresham.
“How could we not keep bringing this back,” Curtis said with a laugh.
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