{"id":29674,"date":"2022-04-08T15:40:39","date_gmt":"2022-04-08T22:40:39","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/lbpost.com\/hi-lo\/?p=30000025961"},"modified":"2022-04-08T16:11:40","modified_gmt":"2022-04-08T23:11:40","slug":"photos-local-preschool-raises-money-with-1st-annual-mini-grand-prix","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lbpost.com\/esd\/news\/photos-local-preschool-raises-money-with-1st-annual-mini-grand-prix","title":{"rendered":"PHOTOS: Local preschool raises money with 1st annual mini Grand Prix"},"content":{"rendered":"

As the Acura Grand Prix of Long Beach kicked off today, enthusiastic parents lined up across town\u2014braving the heat along the sidelines of Lakewood Village Community Church Nursery School\u2014to cheer on their little ones as they raced around in tricycles for the school\u2019s first annual mini Grand Prix.<\/p>\n

As part of a creative fundraising effort, the school turned its outdoor playground into a mini racetrack, fully equipped with a water-fueling station and a Gatorade pitstop at the finish line. Checkered flags and orange traffic cones were set out along with numbered tricycles that corresponded with the racing bib that each preschooler wore.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe kids are just so excited,\u201d said Director Sue Dickson ahead of the race Wednesday.<\/p>\n

One parent said her son, Alex, learned how to ride a bike to prepare for the race. \u201cWe\u2019ve been practicing all week, and he was very excited to participate,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

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Fans cheer as a racer speeds by during the Lakewood Village Nursery School Mini Grand Prix Friday, April 8, 2022. Photo by Brandon Richardson.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Dickson, who started out as a teacher at Lakewood Village 23 years ago, said she was blown away by the support the fundraiser received.<\/p>\n

The COVID-19 pandemic caused the school to temporarily close its doors in March 2020, and by the time it opened back up a few months later, its finances had taken a toll. In an effort to raise money for new playground equipment and better school supplies, the teachers laid out their plan for the race.<\/p>\n

Each of the 115 kids had family members and friends serve as race sponsors, with the donations going to the school.<\/p>\n

As of Friday, the school had raised over $14,000. \u201cThe support has just been overwhelming,\u201d said Dickson.<\/p>\n

The money raised will also fund an end-of-the-year performance by the Jelly of the Month Club, a popular children\u2019s band.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe are just one big family here,\u201d said Dickson. \u201cTo watch the kids come out and have fun is the best part.\u201d<\/p>\n

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A teacher waves the checkered flag, marking the start of the inaugural Lakewood Village Nursery School Mini Grand Prix Friday, April 8, 2022. Photo by Brandon Richardson.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
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Number 8 trike “driver” Reagan high-fives her mom after her race during the inaugural Lakewood Village Nursery School Mini Grand Prix Friday, April 8, 2022. Photo by Brandon Richardson.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
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Parents cheer as their kids race during the Lakewood Village Nursery School Mini Grand Prix Friday, April 8, 2022. Photo by Brandon Richardson.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
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Racers escape the heat with popsicles after their race during the 1st Annual Lakewood Village Nursery School Mini Grand Prix Friday, April 8, 2022. Photo by Brandon Richardson.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
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The No. 11 “driver” Isla is cheered on by her dad and little brother during the Lakewood Village Nursery School Mini Grand Prix Friday, April 8, 2022. Photo by Brandon Richardson.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
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Kids race around the track on tricycles during the Lakewood Village Nursery School Mini Grand Prix Friday, April 8, 2022. Photo by Brandon Richardson.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
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Racers take off for their first lap of the 1st Annual Lakewood Village Nursery School Mini Grand Prix Friday, April 8, 2022. Photo by Brandon Richardson.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
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The “drivers” from Room 6 stretch ahead of their big race during the 1st Annual Lakewood Village Nursery School Mini Grand Prix Friday, April 8, 2022. Photo by Brandon Richardson.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
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A racer drags a cone and flag with their axel during the first Lakewood Village Nursery School Mini Grand Prix Friday, April 8, 2022. Photo by Brandon Richardson.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
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“Drivers” for the 1st Annual Lakewood Village Nursery School Mini Grand Prix rehydrate at the fueling station after their big race Friday, April 8, 2022. Photo by Brandon Richardson.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
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A teacher sprays water on the racers as they speed around the track during the Lakewood Village Nursery School Mini Grand Prix Friday, April 8, 2022. Photo by Brandon Richardson.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
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A gold medal is placed around the neck of the No. 1 trike “driver” Pitcha after the inaugural Lakewood Village Nursery School Mini Grand Prix Friday, April 8, 2022. Photo by Brandon Richardson.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Preschoolers took part in the first annual mini Grand Prix fundraiser at Lakewood Village Community Church Nursery School. The school raised over $14,000 to fund new playground equipment and school supplies. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":297,"featured_media":71981,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"newspack_sponsor_sponsorship_scope":"","newspack_sponsor_native_byline_display":"inherit","newspack_sponsor_native_category_display":"inherit","newspack_sponsor_underwriter_style":"inherit","newspack_sponsor_underwriter_placement":"inherit","inline_featured_image":false,"newspack_ads_suppress_ads":false,"newspack_popups_has_disabled_popups":"","_EventAllDay":false,"_EventTimezone":"","_EventStartDate":"","_EventEndDate":"","_EventStartDateUTC":"","_EventEndDateUTC":"","_EventShowMap":false,"_EventShowMapLink":false,"_EventURL":"","_EventCost":"","_EventCostDescription":"","_EventCurrencySymbol":"","_EventCurrencyCode":"","_EventCurrencyPosition":"","_EventDateTimeSeparator":"","_EventTimeRangeSeparator":"","_EventOrganizerID":[],"_EventVenueID":[],"_OrganizerEmail":"","_OrganizerPhone":"","_OrganizerWebsite":"","_VenueAddress":"","_VenueCity":"","_VenueCountry":"","_VenueProvince":"","_VenueState":"","_VenueZip":"","_VenuePhone":"","_VenueURL":"","_VenueStateProvince":"","_VenueLat":"","_VenueLng":"","_VenueShowMap":false,"_VenueShowMapLink":false,"_":"","_author_alias":"","cap-aim":"","cap-description":"","cap-display_name":"","cap-first_name":"","cap-jabber":"","cap-last_name":"","cap-linked_account":"","cap-newspack_employer":"","cap-newspack_job_title":"","cap-newspack_phone_number":"","cap-newspack_role":"","cap-user_email":"","cap-user_login":"","cap-website":"","cap-yahooim":"","newspack_article_summary":"","newspack_email_html":"","newspack_email_type":"","newspack_featured_image_position":"","newspack_hide_page_title":"","newspack_hide_updated_date":false,"newspack_post_subtitle":"","newspack_show_share_buttons":"","newspack_sponsor_byline_prefix":"","newspack_sponsor_disclaimer_override":"","newspack_sponsor_flag_override":"","newspack_sponsor_only_direct":"","newspack_sponsor_url":"","newspack_article_summary_title":"Overview:","newspack_show_updated_date":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[2002],"tags":[501],"newspack_spnsrs_tax":[],"coauthors":[32003],"class_list":["post-29674","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news","tag-grand-prix","entry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/lbpost.com\/esd\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/29674","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/lbpost.com\/esd\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/lbpost.com\/esd\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lbpost.com\/esd\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/297"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lbpost.com\/esd\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=29674"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/lbpost.com\/esd\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/29674\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lbpost.com\/esd\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/71981"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/lbpost.com\/esd\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=29674"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lbpost.com\/esd\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=29674"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lbpost.com\/esd\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=29674"},{"taxonomy":"newspack_spnsrs_tax","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lbpost.com\/esd\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/newspack_spnsrs_tax?post=29674"},{"taxonomy":"author","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lbpost.com\/esd\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/coauthors?post=29674"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}