(Photo courtesy of the Environmental Center)
The annual parade will be bigger, more colorful this year
The Environmental Center will celebrate Earth Day by hosting its annual Earth Day Fair and Parade on Saturday, April 22. The annual community event, now in its 28th year, is a celebration of sustainable living that will include live music from Ubuntu, local food, activities and games for children and adults, non-profit organizations and green businesses. This year’s event is presented by Strictly Organic Coffee Company.
The fair will be held on Kansas Avenue in front of The Environmental Center at 16 NW Kansas Avenue in downtown Bend from 11:30am to 3pm. This is a free event.
The annual Earth Day Parade will once again kick off the event. This festive parade will be led by B Side Brass Band, followed by children and adults dressed in costumes of their favorite plant, animal or other representation of the natural world. The parade will be held in downtown Bend with staging at 11am on Louisiana Avenue next to McMenamins. The parade will begin at 11:30am, wind through downtown Bend, and end at the Earth Day Fair on Kansas Avenue.
This year’s Earth Day Fair will feature an Electric Vehicle Ride & Drive event, where you can test drive an EV and learn about Central Oregon’s new Electric Vehicle Group Buy Program.
There are two parade rules: no written words and no motorized vehicles. Well-behaved pets on leashes are welcome.
The Environmental Center has partnered with local artists Teafly Peterson and Christian Brown to add interest, color and texture to the parade in the form of eight-foot tall Earth Guardians. Each Guardian will be a unique, large-scale puppet that represents our thriving environment, brought to life by a friend of The Environmental Center who will march in the parade. The River Guardian and Forest Guardian will be revealed during the parade.
Each is designed to spark children’s imaginations and pave the way for conversations about environmental stewardship and how small actions can make a big difference. The Guardians will also be stationed at The Environmental Center’s booth during the street fair for engagement and photo opportunities.
Debra Fisher, a local artist, will host one predator animal mask-making workshop on Saturday, April 15 from 12-2pm at The Environmental Center. Participants should sign up in advance. In addition, all community groups, schools and organizations are encouraged to create their own costumes for the parade.
Those who reach out to The Environmental Center in advance will be provided with a hand-crafted muslin banner to carry during the parade to celebrate their costume creation. These banners are the only form of written words permitted at the parade.
To learn more about costumes, contact Lauren Williams at lauren@envirocenter.org or (541) 385-6908 x18.
The Environmental Center encourages community members to participate in SOLVE IT for Earth Day, a service event in collaboration with SOLVE. Join hundreds of volunteers in Central Oregon and thousands across the state to give back on Friday and Saturday, April 21-22. Sign up for a local, environmental-focused project at www.solveoregon.org/solve-it-earth-day-central-oregon.
Celebrate Earth Day Redmond, Dry Canyon Clean-Up
To help celebrate Earth Day, the City of Redmond is hosting a cleanup of the City’s most used and valuable environmental asset – The Dry Canyon. The Canyon gets heavily used by recreationists of all kinds, including hikers, bikers, dog park users, skate boarders, ball players and more. All the use brings litter, so let’s work together to help clean it up!
This year the City is partnering with Better Together, SOLVE and several surrounding communities to host one of Central Oregon’s largest collective environmental service events.
Bring work gloves. All other supplies provided.
Saturday, April 22, 9am Register at American Legion Park
9-11am Canyon Clean Up
11am.Lunch for volunteers (so please make sure to register)
Minimum age requirement: None, volunteers under 18 must be accompanied by an adult or have parent/guardian sign waiver when dropping off.
To register follow this link:
http://www.ci.redmond.or.us/government/departments/public-works/parks-division/earth-day
