Kiwanis StoryWalk® is an initiative from The Kiwanis Club of Tampa to encourage literacy and exercise for children. Kiwanis StoryWalk® displays a storybook along a walking path page-by-page. In order to read the story, families will walk the path and read along.
The original Kiwanis StoryWalk® in Al Lopez was funded, installed, and continues to be maintained by The Kiwanis Club of Tampa. The literacy program has been expanded into four new parks and the expansion is generously funded by the Children’s Board of Hillsborough County.
Kiwanis StoryWalks are located at the following parks:
- Al Lopez Park – 4810 N Himes Ave, Tampa, FL 33614
- Carrollwood Village Park – 4680 W Village Dr, Tampa, FL 33624
- Rowlett Park – 2401 E Yukon St, Tampa, FL 33604
- Seffner Comm”UNITY” Park & Garden – 410 N Kingsway Rd, Seffner, FL 33584
- Ruskin Park & Recreation Center – 901 6th St SE, Ruskin, FL 33570
Kiwanis volunteers change out the stories each month! The Kiwanis StoryWalk® is be bilingual, with stories displayed in both English and Spanish and best for children age 7 and under.
About Kiwanis
The Kiwanis StoryWalk® is organized and maintained by volunteers from various Kiwanis Clubs around Hillsborough County. Kiwanis strives to improve the world one child and one community at a time. Our enthusiastic volunteers pursue creative ways to serve the needs of children in our community. Each club looks at the unique challenges that children face in our own communities and find ways to step up and help. Learn more about the Kiwanis Clubs that are making StoryWalk® possible:
Kiwanis Club of Tampa
Managing all StoryWalk Locations
Maintaining the StoryWalk® at Rowlett Park & Al Lopez
The Kiwanis Club of Tampa has been helping children and seniors in the local community since 1919. They build residential accessibility ramps, host back-to-school immunization events, provide scholarships, and they host a holiday party for kids in need. They sponsor several High School Key Clubs and a Circle K Club at USF to encourage leadership development. Their Terrific Kids program encourages good character in elementary students. The Tampa Kiwanis Club started the Tampa Kiwanis StoryWalk® at Al Lopez Park and oversees the program at the various parks throughout Hillsborough County and City of Tampa.
Learn more about the Kiwanis Club of Tampa and consider joining their volunteer efforts.
Kiwanis Club of Carrollwood
Maintaining the StoryWalk® at Carrollwood Village Park
The Kiwanis Club of Carrollwood has been committed to serving local children, families, and veterans since 1978. Club members volunteer at the Carrollwood Community Pantry and hold “Cops ‘n Kids” reading events, and support youth programs in High School, Elementary, and middle schoolers. They are committed to Operation Helping Hand Tampa, which serves injured military men and women and their families.
Learn more about the Kiwanis Club of Carrollwood and consider joining their volunteer efforts.
Kiwanis Club of SouthShore
Maintaining the StoryWalk® at Ruskin Park & Recreation Center
The Kiwanis Club of SouthShore serves the towns of Apollo Beach, Ruskin, Sun City Center, Wimauma, and part of Riverview. This Kiwanis Club has several youth programs for students including Terrific Kids programs for elementary students and Builder’s Clubs for middle school students. Their Key Clubs offer an opportunity for high school students to develop themselves as service leaders of the future. Last year they awarded 22 scholarships to local teens.
Kiwanis Club of Greater Brandon
Maintaining the StoryWalk® Seffner Comm”UNITY” Park & Garden
The Kiwanis Club of Greater Brandon has been serving their local community since 1960. Their Terrific Kids’ program encourages character development in elementary students, while their K-Kids program provides elementary students opportunities to work on service projects and develop leadership potential. Their Key Club program encourages service leaadership in high school students. They provide shoes for kids in need and participate in a weekly distribution of food to food insecure families.
Learn more about the Kiwanis Club of Greater Brandon and consider joining their volunteer efforts.
Story Selection Committee
A book selection committee has been formed to hand select each story. This committee is made up of several local organizations dedicated to children’s literacy:
Literacy Resources
Early literacy skills help children develop a foundation for learning, cognitive and language development, and a lifelong love of reading and learning.
Check out these local literacy resources provided by partners of the Kiwanis StoryWalk Program.
- Children’s Board of Hillsborough County Family Guide
- Early Learning Coalition Family Resources
- MyOn – A personalized digital library at every student’s fingertips
- Johns Hopkins Language and Literacy Services.
- Johns Hopkins Pediatric Speech – Language Pathology Services
- Johns Hopkins Preschool Language Class
- Hillsborough County Public Library
- YMCA Reads!
- Kindergarten School Readiness Checklist
Kiwanis StoryWalk® is managed by the Kiwanis Club of Tampa. Contact: admin@tampakiwanis.com.
The StoryWalk® Project was created by Anne Ferguson of Montpelier, VT and developed in collaboration with the Kellogg-Hubbard Library.