As city-hosted summer-time events have come to a conclusion, area residents won’t have to wait long as the City of Yelm’s Parks and Recreation Department will roll out a plethora of family-friendly activities and events throughout the fall season.
Among the fall activities, the City of Yelm will host a “sweater weather” cookie-decorating workshop, the “Mayor’s Cup” tennis tournament, a “Hocus Pocus” workshop, the annual Spooky Trail and a new “Water Tower Tots” program.
“Planning the events that are themed and into the holidays helps make the holiday season just a little more special for the families in our communities,” said Line Roy, the City of Yelm’s communications and recreation coordinator. “I’m really excited to get to offer different activities for families to take advantage of, especially programming that is low cost or free and with other families within the community.”
Roy added that the first fall activity, the “sweater weather” cookie-decorating workshop, will take place from 6 p.m. to 7 p.m. on Tuesday, Sept. 17 at the Yelm Community Center.
Registration for the event costs $40 and can be filled out on the city’s website. A total of 20 spots are available for the event, and participants will receive a cookie toolbox to bring home at the conclusion. The toolbox includes an icing scribe tool, scissors, piping practice pages and cookie recipes.
In addition to the cookie toolbox, participants will learn all of the basics of baking cookies as the activity is intended for “the beginning cookier” or someone interested in learning how to bake cookies.
The second annual Mayor’s Cup event will begin at 9 a.m. on Saturday, Oct. 5 at the Yelm High School tennis courts. In 2023, Mayor Joe DePinto hosted the inaugural event and challenged area residents to a competition in Nintendo’s Mario Kart 8. In 2024, the event returns as DePinto, a former tennis athlete, challenges residents to compete on the courts.
The competition field includes men’s and women’s singles action in the 2.5, 3, 3.5 and 4 skill levels, according to the parks and recreation department. Prizes will be awarded to first-place winners in each of the categories and an additional “bounty” will be placed to eliminate the mayor from his own competition.
Registration costs $20 and can be filled out on the city’s website. According to the City of Yelm’s Parks and Recreation Department, half of the event’s proceeds will be donated to a local non-profit organization.
Then, from 6:30 p.m. to 8 p.m. on Tuesday, Oct. 15, at the Yelm Community Center, the department will host its “Hocus Pocus” paint and plant workshop. For $15, participants will receive a cauldron planter and have the opportunity to paint it. After painting it, participants will then choose one plant to be placed inside. Included in the $15 ticket will be the cauldron planter, all the necessary painting supplies and one plant. People can register online on the city’s website.
From 4 p.m. to 6 p.m. on Tuesday, Oct. 29, people can celebrate Halloween with the City of Yelm’s Parks and Recreation Department as it hosts the annual “Spooky Trail” at Cochrane Park, which will transform into the “spookiest park in Yelm” for the event. The free, family-friendly event can be found at 750 Mill Road SE in Yelm.
New this year is “Water Tower Tots: toddler play time.” The free event will allow “the littlest residents of Yelm” to climb, explore, play and socialize in a safe, controlled and engaging environment at the Yelm Community Center.
“That will be open play for babies and toddlers. We’re starting that new activity at the end of September,” Roy said. “It will be every Monday from 10 a.m. to 11 a.m., starting Sept. 30 through Nov. 25, at the Yelm Community Center. It’s unstructured play for toddlers.”
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