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Summer Fun Ends With 'Bash' At Tampa Convention Center

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By RICH SHOPES

The Tampa Tribune

Published: August 4, 2008

TAMPA - The emphasis was on the "bash" at the All About Kids Back to School Bash, an annual last-hurrah for students getting ready to head back to the classroom.

About 4,000 families packed the Tampa Convention Center on Saturday and Sunday to load up on freebies, including backpacks and bicycle helmets, meet SpongeBob SquarePants and bounce in any of the four inflatable gyms.

"This is really about the kids, so they can have fun one more time," said Kitty Lyons, one of the organizers of the 13th annual event. Admission was $9 for adults and free to children 12 and younger.

Dozens of children lined up to shake hands with the bright yellow Nickelodeon character, SpongeBob, and to pose for pictures.

Elsewhere, children and parents roamed the vast hall, stopping by any of 100 vendors, including Publix and Sam's Club. Some children turned their parents and siblings into mummies using rolls of toilet paper, while others sat on a plush leather couch and took turns playing a Wii video game.

Some children rode bikes while being schooled in bicycle safety from Hillsborough County sheriff's deputies.

Kim Sleeper of Temple Terrace said her children, Connor, 6, and Erin, 12, liked getting the helmets and enjoyed meeting a group of University of South Florida cheerleaders, who autographed posters.

"They liked the free T-shirts and the chicken bites and the fruit cups," she said.

Also popular were the dozens of odd paper hats worn by children and parents alike, courtesy of the Early Childhood Council of Hillsborough County, which brings together 40 social service agencies to tackle a range of children's issues.

Volunteers and staff members made the funky hats from large, colorful sheets of paper. They rolled the ends together and attached flowers and feathers.

Kaitlyn Schumman, 4, of Carrollwood said she liked her blue hat with green and yellow flowers, because, "I like it."

"That's about what you can get from a 4-year-old," said her father, Abel Schumman.

Reporter Rich Shopes can be reached at (813) 259-7633 or at rshopes@tampatrib.com.

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