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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE 
Contact: Columbia Parks and Recreation - (573) 874-7460

Earth Day 2005 activities announced

COLUMBIA, MO (April 12, 2005) -- Don't miss Columbia's 2005 Earth
Day Festival set for Sunday, April 24. This year's celebration will
mark the 35th anniversary of the event. 

The street fair will be held from noon to 6:30 p.m. that day and the
children's area will be open from noon until 5 p.m. Attendees will be
able to enjoy live music on stage from noon to 7 p.m. 

All activities will be held at MU's Peace Park located downtown along
Elm Street between 6th and 9th streets. Booths for the street fair will
be set up on adjacent streets. Booths for the Volunteer Fair will be set
up along the circle drive next to the park. 

In the event of inclement weather, the Earth Day Festival will be moved
to May 1. 

More details about the event follow: 

Annual Community Volunteer Fair
Join the biggest social movement in America today - volunteering! More
than 100 million Americans volunteer billions of dollars worth of time
and services to local, state and national agencies and organizations. 

Dozens of agencies and not-for-profit groups will have information
booths at the Earth Day Festival sharing information on how you can make
a difference in one person's life or in the life of your community by
volunteering your time and talent. Explore opportunities to enrich not
just your life, but your family's life by volunteering as a family.
Enrich your relationships with one another and gain insights into
challenges that other families face. Don't know where to start? Check
out the Voluntary Action Center's Booth for ways that you can get
involved.

Family and Kids' Activities 
Come along with your kids and explore the wonders of nature while
learning to help care for the planet (just south of the stream in Peace
Park - noon to 4 p.m.).

Dig/Skip Stones/Stack Sticks/Braid Vines: Active play with nature's
toys, for toddlers, teens and adults.

Plant a seed: Join the Missouri Master Gardeners to learn what plants
need. Start your own plants to take home and care for this summer.

Catch a Crayfish: Join the Missouri Department of Conservation to learn
what crayfish need. Learn the safe way to catch one and get an up close
look at our very own stream monsters.

Wonder at Wildlife: Join staff and volunteers from Rock Bridge Memorial
State Park to learn how bats find their babies and other interesting
wildlife facts.

Make Friends With Worms: Learn "what worms want" and how to set up
a compost bin in your home or yard to make your kitchen waste magically
disappear - courtesy of Columbia Public Works.

Discover your Watershed: Join the Community Stormwater Partnership to
find out what watershed you live in and how to keep your streams clean.

Sort those Recyclables: Can't keep those recycling categories straight?
Check out some fun games to help you learn what goes where - courtesy of
Columbia Public Works Department and Hickman Biology Club.

Run, Jump and Play: Run with the Giant Earth Ball and take the stilt
challenge with Columbia Parks and Recreation.

Try out Tattoos, Seed Art and Butterfly Baggies: Try out fun washable
tattoos, make some beautiful seed art and butterfly baggies with
Columbia Parks and Recreation.

Animal Art: Create animal masks and puppets using found art materials.

The Sustainable Home 
New this year! Visit the "Garage," the "Yard," the
"Kitchen" and the "Living Room" under the Green Canopies
(between the Kid's Area and the Geology Building in Peace Park - noon
to 4 p.m.). We've pulled together some great ideas and information
about how to live more sustainably. Each canopy has ideas for different
parts of the home, and activities for kids, as well as adults. Learn how
to diagnose the source of a leak in your car, about basic bike
maintenance, how to store hazardous chemicals, or your kid's view of
the neighborhood at the Garage. In the Yard, find out about native
plants, rain gardens, and invasive species. In the Kitchen, discover
ways to save energy, how to reduce what you throw away, and about
simple, healthy snacks. In the Living Room, find out how lighting,
heating and cooling affect your energy bills, and find out how to track
energy vampires.

Street Fair
Sample the wares (and ideas) of hundreds of vendors and organizations
at the street fair. We have everything from fluorescent light bulbs to
fluorescent T-shirts, from saving energy to saving souls. Nothing is too
practical or too esoteric for the Annual Earth Day Street Fair. 

Stage Schedules
Come hear Columbia's up and coming (and free) musical talent - covering
a wide range of tastes, styles and influences. Spread out a blanket in
Peace Park and spend an afternoon soaking up culture and sunshine.

8th Street Stage
12 - Carolyn Mathews & Friends
12:35 - Jeff Arrigo
1 - The Shades
1:35 - Bocomo Drum Heads
2 - Psycho Sis
2:35 - Jon Huffman
3 - Thinline
3:35 - Laura Jean Binkley
4 - One Shot Crockett
4:35 - Moon Belly Dancers w/The Dragonflys
5 - Aurora Borealis
5:35 - Recycled Fashion Show
6 - Witch's Hat

Peace Park Stage
12 - Sheryl Clapton
12:15 - Joe Willett Jazz Ensemble
12:55 - Sheryl Clapton
1:10 - Divine Rhythm
1:35 - Deva Dancers
2 - Raging Grannies
2:20 - Soulstace
3 - Victoria Day w/Mike Barber
3:20 - Madahoochi
4 - Pippa Letsky
4:20 - Hilary Scott Band
6 - Debra Hardin
6:20 - Bockman

West Field
Betty Gayle Smith, member of the Master Gardeners & founder of
Labyrinths of Turtle Island will have a meditative labyrinth available
all day in the Northwest corner of the field. The labyrinth is a simple
spiral path designed to allow you to follow the path to the center,
where inner tensions, burdens, etc. may be left behind before following
the path back out.

Want a Nitty Gritty Earth Day experience? Here's How to Volunteer -
To help with logistics (traffic control and/or clean-up), please
contact Mark Haim, 573/875-0539, peacewks at coin.org.

To help with family and kid's activities, please contact Jan Weaver,
573/874-0171, envstudy at missouri.edu.

To assist the stage and sound crews, please contact Shannon Morris,
573/442-5338, shannon at shannonmorris.com.

Earth Day is sponsored by:
Show Me Clean Streams, MU Environmental Studies, Friends of Rock Bridge
State Park, KOPN, Peace Nook, Peace Works, Downtown Columbia Association
Special Business District, Columbia Public Works, Voluntary Action
Center, Columbia Parks and Recreation, Green Party of Central MO,
Missouri River Communities Network, and MRCN AmeriCorps Program.

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