ROSEBORO — With the 2026-27 school year less than three weeks away, local leaders within the Lakewood District came together to host a cookout, offer games and fun for the whole family, share available services and give-away school supplies. Designed to bring community together, the event was sponsored by the Community Schools initiative, of which the Lakewood District is a part.
The community-wide event took place Saturday at the downtown Roseboro Park, with foam fun, firefighters providing a cooling shower of water and lots of vendors sharing the services they offer to families who strolled the area throughout the four-hour event.
“This year, we decided to do a community event, just to bring everything together,” said Alicia Leach, Lakewood District Community Schools liaison. “We had teachers write grants so we could have activities like the foam and sand art for the kids. We’re giving out food, school supplies and then resources for parents that they can give to their children. If it’s parks and rec or anything that we have out here, the community is welcome to come and get information. But the point was to bring the whole community together and just have a good time.”
The planning for the cookout started in March, as Leach and a couple of administrators and coordinators came together to brainstorm ideas.
“We were meeting once a month to put things into motion,” she explained. “From there, people jumped on and gave insight on what they were wanting to do, and we just built on that.”
The cookout was the first event that the Community Schools program hosted inside of Sampson County Schools.
“Today’s been going well,” Leach expressed, “We’ve seen that our school supplies have been running out, which is great. We see a lot of activity, kids and parents are getting resources and they’re playing. So it’s exactly what I envisioned. The community is important in schools; if you don’t have community support, then it’s very hard to run a school. We know that, so it’s crucial for us to come to a neutral place like Roseboro Park and for us to bring resources and have the parents come. If they have any questions, they’re more than welcome to ask and then we’ll give back to them.”
One of the community resources present was the local library, as Clinton-Sampson Library Director Kelsey Edwards provided books and school supplies for kids that came up to her table.
“It’s important for them to stay reading all year long,” Edwards stressed. “We saw that during the summer, and we were really encouraging kids to come out to our summer reading challenge to get them excited about reading. Even as they go back to school, they have another library (Roseboro Library) that they can access things that their school libraries might not have. They want the kids to read, we want them to read, too, and we’ll still see the kids come in during the school year to check out books. We’re here to do what we can to encourage literacy and learning for kids and adults, so I’m excited.”
Those who stopped at the library tent were eager to look at, and pick up, a free book to take home.
In fact, excitement was the order of the day for all those in attendance.
“I think this is a great thing,” Victoria Morrisey emphasized. “I would love to have it every weekend with the kids, but if nothing else, maybe two Saturdays out the month, if not that, at least one Saturday out the month. It’ll keep the kids out of trouble. If people could see how everybody out here is interacting, it’s been good. I love it and it’s beautiful.”
Morrisey was happy that the cookout event offered something for her and her grandchildren to attend, but also the entire community.
“You know, we don’t see a lot of these (events),” she said. “When my kids were small, every weekend on Friday, Saturdays and Sundays, if they did their chores, we were always doing something. So this gives me a chance to give back something with my grandchildren.”
LaQuisha Miller, who was with her son Ayden Phillips, felt similarly.
“It’s been great,” Miller said of their experience. “Just being around everybody and enjoying the day. I love that he’s been able to have fun with everybody and spend time with his friends.”
Phillips, who attends Salemburg Elementary, noted that his favorite part of the day was playing around in water and spending time with everyone. He was also given supplies for his upcoming year of school. Like many of the children at the cookout, Phillips spent time in the foam area, messing around with each bubble that came his way. With the school year on its way, Phillips said he was “excited” to hit the books again.