Kids' Day Attracts 950 to University

Well, there certainly were a lot of them, and they all spent Saturday at the University. For those who might have been wondering why and where, Saturday was Kids' Day at Harvard for 950 (count 'em) youngsters from Boston, Cambridge, and surrounding communities.

Under the leadership of Phillips Brooks House, the University opened most of its facilities to the kids. With their leaders, they laid siege to the Peabody Museum, the Fogg, the CRIMSON, the IAB pool, Lowell Lecture Hall for cartoons and Rob Roy, Weld Boat House for half-hour boat rides, "Skish-Target" shooting on the banks of the Charles, Widener, athletics at Soldiers Field, and food.

Oh, yes, the food: 165 pounds of hot dogs, 84 dozen ice creams bars, 64 pounds of potato chips, four gallons of mustard and relish, and one dozen tanks of Coke.

Charlie Frightens Girls

Charlie, the CRIMSON's pet mouse, made an unexpected entrance from behind the cigarette machine. The wee beastie frightened 38 (count 'em) girls out of the building.

But there were other things that the kids were talking about even more. The University police ("gosh, it's the fuzz" according to one boy from a reform school); men in uniform who actually smiled and talked to the kids; the welcome they received in University buildings that usually throw them out: all these they saw with awe.

The junior-style Olympics at the field impressed the boys especially. The monolithic stadium that they usually had to sneak into was opening up its facilities for them. "Ya' mean it's for free?" queried a puzzled teen-ager.

The groups ranged from three children to 100, acompanied either by their own leaders or by one of 65 Harvard volunteers who don't usually work for PBH but volunteered especially for Kids' Day. Perhaps one of the most appreciative groups was from the Lyman reform school; they travelled over 40 miles to come. According to one member of its clinical staff. "The PBH volunteers are one of our best therapeutic devices; we'd never let the boys miss this as a culmination to the PBH program."

If the day was designed to let the children feel that it was a special day at Harvard, and that it was a special day because they were here, then it succeeded with at least one boy who said to Kids' Day director Joan H. Budyk '63 "Gee, you must like kids."