Festive Easter egg hunts aren’t just for kids anymore
By Virginia Godwin, Recreation Supervisor
When I was a kid, a typical Easter Sunday featured an Easter egg hunt after church and a feast with family and friends. As an adult, I may seem satisfied to watch the annual egg hunts from the sidelines, but in reality, I regret missing out on the fun.
I’m still a kid at heart.
If you feel the same way, I have some great news — adult Easter egg hunts are a real thing!
The City of College Station’s Parks and Recreation Department has revamped our traditional egg hunt and created one just for grown-ups 18 years and older — and it’s even glow-in-the-dark.
We invite you to join us on Friday, April 12 from 7-10 p.m. for the Glow-in-the-Dark Egg Hunt at Wolf Pen Creek Park. The nostalgic atmosphere will help you relive your fond childhood memories with tunes from the 80s, 90s, and 00s to awake the adolescent in you.
We’ll have games, joy jumps, and face painting with a touch of the trending selfie booth to document your experience. The egg hunt begins at 9 p.m.
Last year, the parks staff wasn’t sure about what to expect as we strategically hid 10,000 eggs. Our worst-case scenario was if 1,000 attendees showed up, they’d each get 10 eggs. We didn’t realize more than 2,000 adult residents had so sorely missed the Easter egg hunts of the childhood.
We never dreamed we’d have that level of participation for a first-time event.
We planned to hide the eggs throughout the park to spread out the savage hunters. For the most part, the strategy fell flat, but the feedback we received helped us to evaluate and analyze the event effectively. We went back to the drawing board.
This year’s egg hunt will be different.
We have doubled our inventory to 20,000 eggs, which include 20 golden eggs that contain prizes from local businesses. In addition, the entire hunt will be on the Festival Site near the old Arts Council building. Our staff of egg protectors will make sure sneaky hunters don’t pilfer any eggs before the hunt begins!
For the safety and enjoyment of our participants, these two simple rules will be in place:
- Stay out of the hunt zone until the coordinators officially start the hunt.
- Keep your hands, feet, and body to yourself. Hitting, kicking, tripping, pushing, body slamming or other forms of physical harm to others will not be tolerated.
Don’t miss out on all the mad fun. It’ll be all that and a bag of chips!
For more information, visit cstx.gov/events or call 979-764-3486.
About the Blogger
Virginia Godwin is in her fifth year as recreation supervisor. A College Station native, she previously served as the staff development specialist for Kids’ Klub, the College Station Independent School District’s after-school program.
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Sunday’s Monarch March marks spring migration
UPDATE (3/2): Because of Sunday’s forecast of cold weather, Monarch March has been rescheduled for next Sunday (March 10) from 1-4 p.m.
By Hallie Hutchins, Parks & Recreation Marketing Assistant
Hello spring, hello monarchs!
The brilliant orange-and-black monarchs are among the most recognizable butterflies that call the Americas home. Texas is fortunate to be among the first states to witness the monarchs’ spring pilgrimage back to their northern homeland.
The Lone Star State and the Brazos Valley are situated between the monarchs’ primary breeding grounds in the north and their wintering areas in the south. That means we get to witness the mesmerizing migration in the spring and fall.
To commemorate the butterflies’ spring journey, the College Station Parks & Recreation Department will host Monarch March on Sunday from 1-4 p.m. at Lick Creek Nature Center. Admission is free.
Monarch March is a fitting tribute to the winged creatures that graze our landscape each spring. The day will be full of interactive and educational activities with the help of community organizations such as Brazos County Master Gardeners, Brazos Valley Master Naturalists, Texas A&M Entomology Department, Urban Interface, A&M Garden Club, and Butterflies in the Brazos.
Experts from these groups will host a booth that instills an appreciation for wildlife through fun, educational activities. Events will include a march through Lick Creek Park’s premier monarch waystation, butterfly arts and crafts, learning about butterfly wings, a migration obstacle course, how to create a waystation or butterfly garden, and much more.
Monarch March celebrates this fascinating time of year while spreading the word about the importance of creating habitats to support these beautiful winged creatures.
Join us as we welcome the iconic black and orange butterflies back into Aggieland!
For more information, visit cstx.gov/monarchs or call 979-764-6216.
About the Blogger
Hallie Hutchins is in her fourth year as a marketing staff assistant in the Parks & Recreation Department after graduating from Texas A&M in 2014 with a degree in sports management. She has previously worked with the Dallas Sidekicks professional soccer team and Texas Team Junior Golf. Originally from White Oak, Hallie also attended Kilgore College and was a member of the famed Kilgore Rangerettes dance team.
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400 athletes reach for gold at CS Senior Games
UPDATE (2/21): Due to expected poor weather conditions, the cycling event has been canceled.
By Kelli Nesbitt, Parks & Recreation Marketing Coordinator
Some senior athletes come out for the camaraderie, while others come to socialize and catch up with old friends. Others just come to experience the thrill of victory.
More than 400 athletes between the ages of 49-89 will go for the gold in the College Station Senior Games from Friday through Sunday at venues across our community. Participants include 345 visitors from outside B-CS and 117 women. About 240 volunteers — mostly Texas A&M students — will help manage the event. (more…)
Spots are going fast for Lick Creek Star Party
UPDATE (2/20): Since it might rain Friday night, we’ve closed registration so we can extend the Discovery Dome showings to last 30 minutes rather than 15. It will be the only activity if it rains. The Discovery Dome will be in the meeting room, and we’ll still have an RPTS booth with an activity and refreshments. We’ll contact registered participants to schedule their show time. If the weather is clear, we’ll still have the originally planned activities.
By Emily Thornton, Lick Creek Nature Center Part-time Program Supervisor
Have you ever looked up at the night sky and wondered what constellations are visible, what that extra bright star is, or whether you see a planet, a moon, or a star? Maybe all that intergalactic information gets lost in, well, space.
Or, maybe you’re just looking for something fun and out of the ordinary to do on a Friday night.
Enter the inaugural Lick Creek Star Party on Friday, Feb. 22 from 7-10 p.m. The event takes place at the Lick Creek Nature Center at 13600 Rock Prairie Road. The City of College Station’s Parks and Recreation Department has partnered with Texas A&M’s Recreation, Park and Tourism Sciences Department to bring this unique, star-studded event to area residents. (more…)
Condolences to family of Bright Park namesake
Myra Bright
By Jay Socol, Public Communications Director
The City of College Station expresses its sincere condolences to the family and friends of Myra Bright, 85, who passed away Thursday.
Mrs. Bright and her late husband Art became namesakes of Art & Myra Bright Park in 2015 – a 12-acre neighborhood park previously known as Raintree Park.
The Brights were longtime residents of College Station – the first family to live in the Raintree subdivision – who devoted countless hours of service to numerous community organizations. Mrs. Bright and her generous spirit will be missed. (more…)
Senior Games give older athletes a fun way to compete
By Gabriela Salazar, Tourism Events Supervisor
Each year, the College Station Senior Games attracts competitors 50 and older from across Texas and as far away as Los Angeles. We had 410 athletes compete in 2018, including 339 from outside of Bryan-College Station.
We are thrilled so many visitors want to compete in College Station, but we also encourage local seniors to seize the hometown advantage. You don’t have to be an Olympic-caliber athlete, although the Games have featured former Olympians such as Jim Gerhardt, who competed in the triple jump in the 1952 Olympics.
The 2019 Senior Games are set for Feb. 22-24 and offer multiple events for athletes of all skill levels. The $30 participation fee includes a shirt and access to a social gathering, with additional fees charged for each event. The registration deadline is Feb. 11. (more…)
