“Every spring is the only spring, a perpetual astonishment.”
– Ellis Peters
Interesting egg hunts
Here’s my round-up of interesting egg hunts for you and your crew. Remember your baskets, and happy hunting and always look in those rabbit hutch outdoor set ups, we all know how much bunnies love eggs!
Thursday, March 24, 6 p.m.: Gold’s Gym, 258 Titusville Road, Poughkeepsie. Free indoor egg scramble, take your own photos with the Easter Bunny; www.goldsgym.com/poughkeepsielagrangeny
Friday, March 25, 1 p.m.: West Hurley Town Park, Dughill Road, West Hurley. Bring the entire family to this one; (845) 331-7474, extension 313.
Friday, March 25, 7:30 p.m.: Millbrook Town Park, 35 Merrit Avenue, Millbrook. For children fourth grade through adult, free twilight egg hunt; remember your flashlights.
Saturday, March 26, 11 a.m.: Forsyth Park, Lucas Avenue, Kingston. Rain or shine; meet the Easter Bunny and Penny the Pig; activities by MAC Park Fit Kids; www.facebook.com/jlkny.
Saturday, March 26, 3:30 p.m.: Old Dutch Church, 272 Wall Street, Kingston. Free, for children age 10 and under; (845) 853-0496.
A taste of college classes for teens at Marist Splash
How to Solve a Rubik’s Cube…Get Filthy Rich in the Stock Market!…Smallpox and the American Revolution…Biographies of Sports Stars: What They Can Teach Us…Got a teen who might be interested in a day of fun classes like these, taught by college students?
Marist Splash is a special day of fun one-hour classes for students in grades seven through 12. The Splash takes place in the Student Center at Marist College on Saturday, April 2 from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. The cost is $10 for the day, and it is a dropoff program, so you get the time to do something fun and interesting, too.
Marist College is located at 3399 North Road in Poughkeepsie. For more information or to register, e-mail maristsplash@gmail.com or visit https://marist.learningu.org/learn/splash/index.html.
Write your own American Girl story about a young Huguenot
Got a creative kid between who’s somewhere between 7 and 12 years old? Your child can win a prize for writing his or her own Huguenot Street Girl story from the perspective of Maria Hasbrouck. Then, how about a special tea with an author of historical fiction?
On Saturday, April 9 from 2 to 4 p.m. at Historic Huguenot Street’s Deyo Hall, families are invited to enjoy tea with American Girl author Valerie Tripp. Valerie will share about her writing experiences, autograph American Girl Doll books and read the winners of the story contest: one for ages 7 to 9 years and one for ages 10 to 12 years. The cost of the tea is $25 for adults and $20 for children 12 and under, and registration is required.
Story submissions are due by Saturday, April 2 via e-mail to stories@huguenotstreet.org or by mail to 88 Huguenot Street, New Paltz, NY 12561, Attn: Kara Gaffken. Deyo Hall is located at 6 Broadhead Avenue in New Paltz. For more information, call (845) 255-1660 or visit www.huguenotstreet.org. To learn more about the author, visit https://valerietripp.org.
THURSDAY, MARCH 24
Guided bird & animal walks at River Center in Beacon
Wishing for more local, hands-on environmental science opportunities for kids and families? Well, Scenic Hudson has got you covered! This Thursday, March 24, it’s “Binoculars and Bird Identification,” and Friday, March 25, it’s “Looking for Signs of Animals.” The Scenic Hudson River Center is open from 2 to 5 p.m. with art and wildlife specimens, and guided walks at 3 and 4 p.m. – all geared for children from kindergarten through eighth grade.
Scenic Hudson River Center is located at 8 Long Dock Road in Beacon. For more information or to RSVP, call (845) 473-4440, extension 238, e-mail kbrill@scenichudson.org or visit https://scenichudson.org.
FRIDAY, MARCH 25
Call for entries: immigrant art
Disheartened by negative publicity about immigrants in mainstream media? Here’s your chance to tell your story! “New Worlds, New Voices” is part of the Kingston Multicultural Festival in May, where artists share their story about coming to America.
Submissions are due Friday, March 25 to storyteller Lorraine Hartin-Gelardi at lhartin@aol.com; include your name, what type of artist you are and a brief description of the story you want to tell. For more information, visit www.rehercenter.org or www.facebook.com/reherbakery.
Rosendale Theatre presents Savannah Stories
Not only can your family attend an original musical this week, but you probably know someone in it! This Friday, March 25 at 5 p.m., the amazing Debbie Lan presents her new musical, Savannah Stories, at the Rosendale Theatre. The production opens with a special performance by Carol Caru Thompson, master of the shekere, a West African gourd instrument, and a storyteller. And Savannah Stories includes area children who worked on this production through Youth Arts at the Rosendale Theatre. Admission costs $10 for adults, $5 for children. The Rosendale Theatre is located at 408 Main Street in Rosendale. For more information, visit www.rosendaletheatre.org or www.facebook.com/rosendaletheatre.
Minecraft meet-up at Tivoli Free Library
Creepers gonna creep…so since your kid’s on spring break, how about some extra Minecraft action? This Friday, March 25 from 2 to 3:30 p.m. at the Tivoli Free Library, kids aged 8 years and up are invited to play the creative and construction-intensive Minecraft video game together. Best if you can bring your own computer, but public laptops are available on a first-come, first-served basis. Who knows what these youth can create together?
The Library is located at 86 Broadway in Tivoli. For more information or to let them know that you’re coming, call (845) 757-3771, e-mail tivolilibrary@gmail.com or visit https://tivolilibrary.org. To learn more about Minecraft (which I highly recommend), visit https://minecraft.net.
SATURDAY, MARCH 26
Birding primer at Olana
Has the springtime air got you singing “Rockin’ Robin”? Channel that ornithology energy and head over to the Olana State Historic Site for the “Birding 101: Lecture and Hike” this Saturday, March 26 from 9 to 11 a.m. Learn about the diverse birdlife in the forest, pick up some basics of bird observation and identification and discover ways birds enrich our lives and connect us to nature.
This event is open to the public of all ages. The cost is $10 for non-members, $5 for members. The Olana State Historic Site is located at 5720 Route 9G in Hudson. For more information or to register, call (518) 828-0135 or visit www.olana.org.
Catskill Mountain Railroad Easter Bunny Express
Looking for an alternative to hopping down the bunny trail? How about a train ride instead? Take the Catskill Mountain Railroad Easter Bunny Express this Saturday, March 26 at 10:30 a.m., 12 noon, 1:30 and 3 p.m. out of the Westbrook Station. The rides include an ongoing Easter egg hunt, snacks and photos with the Easter Bunny. Tickets cost $18 for adults, $12 for children ages 2 to 12, $16 for seniors, military and veterans and are free for toddlers under 2 in a lap.
Westbrook Station is located at 149 Aaron Court in Kingston Plaza in Kingston. For tickets or more information, call (845) 688-7400 or visit https://catskillmtrailroad.com.
Donations needed for Poughkeepsie Easter egg hunt
Everyone wants to be charitable in December, but if you want to follow in the footsteps of late community organizer John Flowers, volunteering is a year-round gig. The annual egg hunt that he started back in 1995 for kids in Poughkeepsie takes place at Waryas Park on Saturday, March 26, and your donations are needed: plastic eggs, individually wrapped candy, small Easter baskets, small toys such as Beanie Babies or a financial donation of cash or check made out to Family Partnership with John Flowers in the memo line.
You may drop off your donations at Habitat for Humanity of Dutchess County, located at 45 Catharine Street in Poughkeepsie. For more information, call (845) 475-9336 or visit https://habitatdutchess.org/easteregghunt.
MONDAY, MARCH 28
Book Blossoms trial workshop at Poughkidsie
I love book clubs so much, I belong to three of them. If discussion is an enhancement to your own reading experience, how about introducing something like it to your kids? This Monday, March 28, Poughkidsie presents a free trial workshop of the Book Blossoms, a nationwide interactive book club for children from pre-K through second grade, and this is its first Hudson Valley chapter! The Book Blossoms consists of weekly workshops focused on a piece of literature incorporating reading, writing, movement, art and drama. The trial workshop for ages 4 and 5 takes place at 10:30 a.m.; the session for first and second grades takes place at 4 p.m.
Poughkidsie is located at 50 Springside Avenue in Poughkeepsie. For more information or to register for a trial workshop, call (845) 243-3750 or visit www.poughkidsie.com. To learn more about this reading adventure program, visit www.thebookblossoms.com.
TUESDAY, MARCH 29
Adults can enter Community Spelling Bee at Marist College
Enough for the kids, you say! We want a spelling bee for the older set! Yes? Then feast your occipital awareness on the 25th annual Community Spelling Bee this Tuesday, March 29 at the Marist College Student Center. Registration begins at 8:45 a.m. and the event finishes up by 12 noon. The Bee is open to high school and college students as well as adults of all ages, and sponsorships are welcome, as the event is a fundraiser for Literacy Connections. You can watch the event and get breakfast for your $5 Guest admission.
Marist College is located at 3399 North Road in Poughkeepsie. For more information, call (518) 697-8227, e-mail colgreene@literacyconnections.org or visit www.literacyconnections.org/spelling-bee-info.
THURSDAY, MARCH 31
Free intro to fencing at Poughkeepsie’s Phoenix Center
As the saying goes, “Good fences make good neighbors.” But how about doing the sport of fencing? You can try for yourself this Thursday, March 31 from 5 to 7 p.m. at Go Fence Day at the Phoenix Center, including a group instruction class from 6 to 7 p.m. The Phoenix Center is Dutchess County’s only full-time fencing facility, and now you can check out its new home at 250 Hooker Avenue in Poughkeepsie. For more information, call (845) 486-4525 or visit https://phoenix-center.net.
Erica Chase-Salerno is definitely not sharing her Ronnybrook Farm Lola’s Mint Chocolate Lace ice cream. She can be reached at kidsalmanac@ulsterpublishing.com.
Join the family! 
