St. Albert participates in International Youth Day for first time

Kids and teens ages 12 to 18-years-old gathered at St. Albert Place for a free drop-in event to celebrate Youth Day.

The City of St. Albert on Tuesday participated in International Youth Day for the first time, teaming up with local organizations to provide a myriad of free activities and resources.

• Sign up for breaking news alerts from CTV News Edmonton, right at your fingertips

Between 10:30 and 2 p.m., St. Albert Public Library, St. Albert Place and Little White School hosted activities like DIY magnets and keychains, Indigenous games, rock painting, and speed cup stacking, then a barbecue.

“This is just an opportunity during the summer for all agencies to come together and offer a little snippet of what they do, whether it’s resources or whether it’s an activity or some program,” said Shannon Piller, the city’s youth asset development coordinator.

Boys and Girls Clubs Big Brothers Big Sisters of Edmonton and Area, Kikosewin Family Resource Network, PFLAG St. Albert, Salvation Army’s The Bunker and St. Albert Family Resource Network helped put on the event.

International Youth Day was proposed in 1991 during the first session of the World Youth Forum of the United Nations System in Vienna, Austria. The day became official in 1998.

Piller said the city hopes to participate again next year.