More than 400 people attended the inaugural Kids Adventure Expo at Woodman Park Community Centre in Brantford on Saturday, February 21, 2026.
Hosted by EduColor Press, a Brantford-based children’s media and publishing company, the family-focused event was designed to be a one-day celebration of learning through play.
The six-hour expo featured a host of carnival-style games, interactive stations, inflatable attractions, and around 30 local vendors selling toys, books, treats and other various items. The program also included storytelling sessions, martial arts demonstrations, and other interactive entertainment from the likes of Rumple and Friends, STOMPtastic line dancers, SiNG iT Brantford, Studio 5678 and Brantford Theatre Company and Expressive Arts Studio.
Youngsters could also spend their time in one or more of the three workshops available throughout the day like the Pilot-in-Training Lab, the Messy Masterpiece Studio and the Creative Kitchen.
Upon arrival, children received an “Adventure Passport” which encouraged them to make their way around and participate in the expo by collecting stamps and stickers to redeem prizes.
Kathleen Livingstone, a Brantford-based children’s author, said she felt like the passport gave children a good opportunity to engage with other people.
“I like the little activity passport because they have to come and politely ask for the stamp, and I think that’s helping to teach them to interact with other people but in a safe environment,” she said. “And I have to say everyone has been so polite so it’s been a lot of fun.”
Livingstone added that she was overall enjoying the event and what it was doing, not just for families, but for her as a vendor as well.
“It’s amazing, the kids are having a great time and I’ve just been overwhelmed by all the people that have come out today,” she said. “It’s nice because there’s games, there’s books, there’s just everything you could possibly think of, and it brings the parents and kids together. I’ve also made some very good contacts today, and they’ve given me some ideas too, which has been great.”
Christina Han, one of the organizers of the event, said that was one of the goals of the expo, to help establish connections while simultaneously giving children something fun to do.
“The whole idea was to gather local artists and authors who cater to children and families, and give them a chance to interact face-to-face,” she said. “A lot of people, especially local authors, find it very difficult to reach out to families and so this has been a great opportunity for them to do just that.”
Nicole Campbell, Artistic Director of Brantford Theatre Company and Expressive Art Studio, said that as a newer company, the event provided a chance to share more information about what she does.
“I do a lot of these kinds of expos and different festivals and such, but what has stood out to me thus far for this one, is that it’s very well organized and it was marketed very well too, the turn out has been so good,” she said. “The benefit of an event like this [as a vendor] is the exposure; everyone is so busy and while you can have your info in newspapers or on social media, the best opportunities are when you can actually talk to people and tell them about what you do so they can see your enthusiasm. It’s great too because we get to network with other businesses who are like-minded and have the same audience. That’s really helpful for us because we only opened a few months ago so this is a great opportunity to build up exposure and let people know we’re here.”
Brantford resident Nicole Small, who brought her five- and eight-year-old to the expo, said she was impressed with the event.
“It’s been great. It’s busy and full of people, but I really like the vendors they have and all the niche stuff around like the books and the Dungeons and Dragons,” she said. “It’s nice too because it gives us something to do on a Saturday and keeps us busy. It also gets the kids more comfortable talking to different people; my oldest is eight so if he was interested in buying something, I got him to do all the talking with the vendors so I like that it got him talking to people which is something he doesn’t like to do.”
