Families crowded Civic Center Park Saturday, enjoying the balmy weather and a host of activities at Denver’s first annual Future Fest.

Future Fest — the day-long event in the city’s center — had a few missions in mind, including bringing Denverites together as a community. The main goal, though, was to introduce young children to possible career paths through both the city’s departments and partnering organizations.

“We’re really thinking about how we can engage with our community in different ways,” Alyse West, recruiter with City and County of Denver and lead organizer of Future Fest, said, highlighting the family-fun energy surrounding the event.

More than 40 city and county departments and agencies were present — including the Denver Police Department, Parks and Recreation and Denver International Airport — providing activities and information. Other partners, like the city’s major sports teams, YMCA and Special Olympics Colorado, met with children.

“It’s super important, not only from a career aspiration perspective but the building of authentic community relationships,” West said of the event. “A lot of times our kids interact with our employees at times of crisis, it’s not just to have fun and create experiences and memories. This is our opportunity to do that.”

West noted that she was inspired by Denver Mayor Mike Johnston’s Vibrant Denver initiative while creating the event.

Johnston’s campaign initiative looked to bring more liveliness to downtown through community-driven events like Future Fest.

“We believe you have to start the conversation early,” West added. “A lot of industries don’t start talking to kiddos about their career until high school and, at that point, they’ve made a decision of what pathway they want to go down. So, by starting the conversation younger and posing the question ‘what do you want to be when you grow up?’ it sparks different ideas. This is all about exposure.”

Johnston echoed the idea while speaking at the festival, saying that when you ask children what they want to be when they grow up, they often say lofty goals like becoming professional athletes.

“That’s great to dream, but when you really think about it, what’s the biggest dream you can have? The biggest dream you can have is ‘I want to make the place I live a better place.’” Johnston said. “We think the greatest thing you can aspire to be when you grow up in Denver is someone who leads Denver.”

The festivities also included a parade, performing arts showcase and a business pitch idea akin to the “Shark Tank”television show, all highlighting the abilities and creativity of Denver youth.

During the pitch event, five youth groups provided their business ideas to selected entrepreneurs congruent to the specific idea.

The children met with entrepreneurs prior to the event at the city’s Park Hill Innovation Hub to polish their presentations.

“A lot of the kids that we serve are always looking for something that they can do and having their voice be heard,” Liz Mulei, program manager of Denver Economic Development and Opportunity said of the pitch contest.

“It’s critical to listen to our kids and foster their creativity. They’re literally our future. We try to target kinds in our neighborhoods that don’t have opportunities or lack resources. Those are the kids we want to serve.”

While the sun shined, families were enjoying the chance to meet with the city they live in.

Denver child Amelie Sandim-Adams, for example, said her favorite part of the event was the face-painting provided by the City of Denver.

Her mother, Carmen Sandim, understood how important opportunities like this are, though.

“It’s been really cool to get to introduce her to all of the different parts of the Denver government and have a little more awareness of everything that the government does for the city,” Sandim said.