Earth Day Celebrations in Malverne-West Hempstead

Earth Day is April 22, but the celebration will start Saturday and continue well into Sunday in Malverne-West Hempstead.

Farm Festival

in Malverne will kick off the Earth Day festivites on April 21 with a festival that will run from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. This also marks the seasonal re-opening of the farm.

Throughout the day, there will be a petting zoo and kids will be able to make their own seedling pots and plant seeds to take home. There will also be a "Made on Long Island Market" featuring 14 local bakers and artisans and at 2 p.m., a live musical performance.

Starting at 11:30 a.m., they'll be a farm tour every hour with Education Director Leonore Russell, Farmer Bill Walsh and his crew. Walsh will also give a demonstration at noon on family vegetable transplanting. Dr. Pennie Schwartz will be hosting beekeeper tours at 12:30 p.m. and 2:30 p.m.

There will also be two gardening Q&A sessions - one at noon with Cornell Master Gardner Roellyn Armstrong and another at 1:30 p.m. on vegetable gardening with Assistant Field Manager Elizabeth Schaefer.

CSA Coupon Books will also be on sale with the farm offering a 10 percent discount to those who purchase at the start of the growing season.

West Hempstead SHINES

The West Hempstead school district will celebrate Earth Day on April 22 by hosting its first "West Hempstead SHINES" event, from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m., at (450 Nassau Blvd.).

This special family-oriented festival, which is sponsored by NYS Assemblyman Edward Ra and Town of Hempstead Councilman Edward Ambrosino, will celebrate health, fitness and environmental awareness. 

Community members are encouraged to ride their bikes to the event, which will feature the first "Running with the Ram," a 1.5 mile family fun run that includes the West Hempstead Ram mascot. (Registration for the run will start at 11:15 a.m., followed by a Zumba warm-up at 11:30 a.m., a parade to the start line at 11:45 a.m. and the actual run at noon.)

Runners can then cool down with a yoga session or keep their heart rates up with a Dance Party at 1 p.m. and 1:30 p.m. or a Zumba lesson at 1:15 p.m. There will be another Yoga Lesson at 1:45 p.m. too.

The day will also feature a Kiddie Kraft area, which opens at 12:45 p.m. and information tables for Assemblyman Ra, Councilman Ambrosino, LIPA, Operation Splash, the Town of Hempstead E‐Cycle & S.T.O.P. program, the Tanglewood Preserve, Safe Fun in the Sun, the West Hempstead Chamber of Commerce, West Hempstead H.S. Key Club, and the West Hempstead H.S. Student Council.

Over at the Class of 2012 will be re-opening the time capsule they buried when they were elementary students at 2 p.m. At 2:15 p.m., residents can take part in planting a 9/11 Ten Year Anniversary garden near the playground there..

In the event of inclement weather, the planned activities will be moved indoors to the , located at 400 Nassau Blvd.

Look for coverage of both of these events on Patch next week. 

How will you be celebrating Earth Day this weekend? Tell us in the comments space below.