Mark your calendars! The 4th Annual Slow Food East End Earth Day Celebration is this Saturday, 4/19, and it’s more family-friendly than ever

Petite North Fork photo

“As parents ourselves, it's important for us to put on an event where we know kids will not leave without having learned something about respecting Mother Earth and how each of us can do small things every day to take care of her,” Marissa Drago, Slow Food East End Board Member, shared. “Kids will be able to get their hands dirty in soil and compost, learn where their food comes from, the importance of our ecosystem, and that supporting our local economy is just as important as supporting the environment itself.”

And being a North Fork parent, I couldn’t agree more. 

This year, bring your whole crew to Golden Acres Organic Farm in Jamesport to celebrate Earth Day with a family-friendly,  immersive, East End community-based event by Slow Food East End. 

This annual event, scheduled for Saturday, April 19, from 1 to 4 p.m., will feature more kid-centric activities than ever before. If you plan to make it to one Earth Day celebration this year, make sure this is it!

“We're so excited for the activities for the kiddos this year,” Marissa told us. “Party Animal North Fork is sponsoring an Eco Egg Hunt where each child will be able to ‘search’ for a few eggs in one of the gorgeous fields at the farm. Afterwards, they'll be able to head over to a crafting table to decorate those eggs…no waste! There will be gardening and seed starting activities with expert gardeners throughout the afternoon, a live protected beehive brought to us by master beekeeper Chris Kelly. Rowan Craft Boutique out of Southold will be hosting a kids paint activity throughout the afternoon, we've got a face painter, live music, and a sandbox and lawn toys for the littles.”

While no outside food or beverage is permitted, food and drinks by local vendors will be available for purchase.

“We have Lombardi's Love Lane Market selling delicious sandwiches, springtime salads and soups; Peconic Gold Oysters shucking fresh oysters, DoubleSpeak Cocktails hosting a very special lemonade stand for kids and adults alike, Hampton Coffee Company will be keeping us all energized throughout the afternoon, Disset Chocolate will be on hand for all of our chocolate cravings, and Cab Franc Forward will be pouring tastes of said wine from 7 regional wineries including Macari and Wolffer Estate Vineyards,” said Marissa.

The day will bring together over 35 East End vendors and small businesses that shine as experts in their respective fields.

“The beauty of this event, besides its convenient location from both forks, is its the only event that we are aware of that highlights the East End in it's entirety and focuses on small businesses doing big things in the realm of regenerative farming, sustainability and paying attention to and protecting the biodiversity right in our own backyards,” Marissa told us. “We're also bringing together some of the better-known organizations to discuss their programs like PSE&G R.E.A.P. Program, Ecological Cultural Initiative, Cornell Marine Program, Surfrider Eastern LI, and ReWild LI.”

Marissa hopes that Earth Day Celebration attendees (of all ages!) learn something about our responsibility to our local environment and carry their findings home with them.

“We know it's beautiful here — the summertime and fall crowds alone tell us that people feel something special on the East End of Long Island! We can relate, but it's so much more than that. It's all of us who are here all the time, year-round, working hard to protect what we have for all to enjoy for generations to come. That's not something you can learn in school alone — you need to be out there, seeing it, touching it, smelling it, eating it, and understanding that we each have a responsibility to protect it. That's what we hope families walk away from Earth Day discussing in the car ride home,” she shared. 

Slow Food East End is a local chapter of Slow Food, a global organization. The fully volunteer chapter covers the North and South Forks and is the most active chapter in the US supporting its own programs like Flour Power, Snail of Approval, School and Community Gardens, Resilience Grants, and events like Earth Day and our Market Dinner Series. It's only through sponsorships, partnerships, memberships, and donations that the chapter can support local agricultural institutions, educators, eco-minded and community-focused food makers and purveyors. Please consider giving a donation to the organization in any amount to support and help grow these important programs. If you would like to get involved with Slow Food East End, email them at slowfoodeastend@gmail.com.