Celebrate the Earth with a family event in Newcastle

Celebrate the earth and the first signs of g by visiting our neighbors in Newcastle who have organized an exciting event to celebrate Earth Day on Saturday, April 23 at Lake Boren Park.

"We are proud to present this event which fosters our community's love for the environment," said Grace Stiller, chair of Newcastle Earth Day."The event is designed to promote the "green" businesses and groups in the community, while enjoying a fun day in Newcastle's premier park, Lake Boren Park," Stiller said.

Weed Warriors will host a habitat restoration program and volunteers are welcome to help, she said. Two volunteers that have been integral to the Earth Day events are Kelsey Mejlaender and Kent Coburn, students at .  They have worked to market the Earth Day events and have volunteered with the Weed Warriors on getting out the word about noxious weeds. 

"I've come to a number of the events and done everything from tree planting to blackberry bush cutting," said Mejlaender. "I've also volunteered at Weed Warriors booths to inform people about noxious weeds," she said. "I like that they do so much to inform people about what are noxious weeds and what plants are native. There is some really surprising information that is good to know and it enables people to be more careful in what they plant in their yards," Mejlaender said.

"Both students are passionate about their involvement in the community and are environmental stewards that aren't afraid to get their hands dirty!" said Stiller. 

The Earth Day event will run from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. and includes green activities, mini-seminars, the Hazen Jazz Band, a recycling relay sponsored by Waste Management, and the Boeing Employees Concert Band providing background classical music.

Activities abound for the kids, including youth poster awards, a plant ID adventure, and a restoration project for environmental stewards. A long list of participants will have booths at the festival, including: Puget Sound Energy, King County Library System, the Newcastle Historical Society, WA Native Plant Society, Cedar River Composting, and Mountains to Sound Greenway Trust. The complete list of sponsors is available here.

Also on hand at the event will be  Mr. Scrappy,  a local recycler, who will collect recycle materials. The Newcastle Earth Day is sponsored by The City of Newcastle, The Newcastle Chamber of Commerce, and the Newcastle Weed Warriors, a nonprofit organization that works to reduce invasive nonxious weeds in parks and trails in the Newcastle area.

"What I like about Earth Day, in general, is that it's a great reminder to stay green," said Mejlaender. "All sorts of events, like this one, pop up in honor of the day to support green practices and it's just a really good reminder for people to be earth friendly. And it's an excuse to bring the community together to celebrate our home."

Lake Boren Park is located at 13058 SE 84th Way, Newcastle, just off of Coal Creek Parkway.