A Free Saturday in Hagerstown Shouldn't Feel Like a Luxury.

Everybody talks about making memories with your kids like the shit is free. Take everybody out for one Saturday and watch how fast the little charges start adding up. Parking, food, drinks, admission, something else the kids want to try. By the time you get home, a simple day out has turned into another bill.

That's why Hagerstown putting on a free City Park Fall Fest back on September 19 actually meant something. The city's official schedule advertised free family activities across six locations, 11 a.m. to 4 p.m., with museum tours, art activities, pony rides, recreation, and a South End Community Block Party. The fireworks were scheduled for 7:45 that evening. I'm looking back at the advertised program, not pretending I attended or know how the day went.

Free shouldn't mean standing around with nothing to do.

I like the fact that there were options. A kid could come for the animals and end up finding something in a museum. Somebody else might try art for the first time because their parent didn't have to buy a ticket just to find out whether they'd enjoy it. Those are small opportunities people overlook when they're not the ones checking their account before saying yes.

And I'm not saying every vendor should work for free. People selling food or handmade stuff deserve to make money too. My point is that families should still be able to show up, participate, and leave with a good memory without spending a damn thing. The city's listing made that distinction possible by offering free activities alongside food and craft vendors.

The real question is what happens the other 364 days.

What I don't want is for free community access to become something we celebrate once a year, then forget about. Keep the park welcoming. Keep the events easy to find. Tell people up front what costs money and what doesn't. Run shuttles when the park is spread out. The September listing included a free shuttle schedule, and that's the kind of detail that matters when you're moving a whole family around.

Hagerstown doesn't need another argument about whether the city has anything for people to do. It needs more reasons for people to get out, bring their families, and feel like the city belongs to them too.