Between the blare of horns and the echoes of sirens, the WFCU Centre sounded like a modern-day traffic jam on Saturday. In fact, it was actually the enthusiastic button-pressing and horn honking by kids at Windsor’s Meet-A-Machine. Thousands marched through the East Windsor parking lot to try out the various industrial, emergency service and recreational vehicles on hand. For 3.5-year-old Atharv, his favourite vehicle was “the crane truck,” also known as the bucket truck. “I saved a raccoon and a cat,” Atharv said about his time in the bucket truck. The free event featured about 80 vehicles from different industries, along with a small CN Rail mascot that visitors could ride in. Alicea Fleming, the City of Windsor’s manager of children’s services, noted they strive to “bring literacy to life” each year. “So our goal is to have lots of different machines that kids are seeing in their favourite books, get them a chance to get on the machines, honk the horns, as you can hear, and really get hands-on playing,” she said. Walking into the event, each kid was able to receive a free book to bring home. As of about 12:45 p.m., Fleming estimated that at least 6,000 people had attended this year’s event. “It’s a good opportunity for parents and their kids to get together and do some learning together,” she added. Ahead of the 10 a.m. start, the event featured a sensory-friendly hour for children who wanted a quieter, less crowded space.
