With The Daniel Boone Festival kicking off next week, local children ranging from kindergarten to second grade got a jumpstart to a frontier adventure through a storybook walk on Burch/Nau Field.

As they arrived, children were greeted with high fives and cheers by members of the Union College football team. They were then led to different stations around the football field where students in the Union College Educational Studies Unit (ESU) read pages from, "A Picture Book of Daniel Boone." The beautifully illustrated book tells the story about Boone and his humble beginnings in 1734.

After the story portion of the walk ended, children were able to run on the field, toss football with players, and engage in additional physical activity. 

The two-day event, held September 30 and October 1, was an opportunity for those involved to engage children through reading, co-teach with local schools, be involved in the community, and promote college and career readiness.

"At the end of the day it is about the kids, the purpose of this was to get heavily involved in the community," said Alex Bell, Associate Head Coach for Union College Football.

"It's more than just football to us and when these kids become young adults we hope they see the value in things like this."

The storybook walk was organized by ESU Students, Union College football program, and Knox Promise Neighborhood.