GODFREY - Several events are coming up this spring and summer at Glazebrook Park in Godfrey, including an Arbor Day Celebration, Youth Fishing Derby, and much more. Parks and Recreation Director Chris Logan appeared on a recent episode of Our Daily Show! on Riverbender.com to discuss the upcoming events.
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This Saturday, April 29 is the Youth Fishing Derby, which is catch-and-release and free to the public. Registration is required, but you can register online or at the event starting at 9 a.m. Fishing will begin at 10 a.m. and last until 11:30 a.m., when the judges will make their final decisions to award the Biggest Catch, Most Fish Caught and Strangest Catch awards.
“We actually have a category called ‘Strangest Catch,’ so if somebody reels in half a thing of Christmas lights, we’ve got a little something for you,” Logan said.
Winners will be announced during an award ceremony at noon. There are three age groups: 4-6, 7-9, and 10-12. Participants are asked to bring their own bait and fishing poles.
Saturday is also the 25th annual Arbor Day Celebration. The event is meant to celebrate “the environment and all things trees,” as well as honor lost loved ones with honorary trees. Free redbud tree seedlings will be given away to the first 300 visitors.
“People who buy memorial trees for loved ones that have passed - family members, friends - you can purchase one of those through the Village of Godfrey, we’ll plant them, and every year on Arbor Day we will dedicate it,” Logan said. “We’ll have a map showing you where your tree is, they’ll be marked with a little tree tag on it, and you’ll be able to go out and see it and it’s special. Some of my family members have memorial trees and it's just nice to see a way they can live on in our lives still.”
The Arbor Day Memorial Dedication will be at the Glazebrook Park Concession Stand Area from 1:30 to 3:00 p.m. Guests are encouraged to arrive 30 minutes early with their own lawn chairs.
Next Wednesday, May 3, is Big Truck Day from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. Local fire trucks and other first-responder vehicles will be on display for kids and families to get a closer look at them. The event has no age restriction and no registration required, and Logan said there will even be a helicopter there.
“It’s going to be a lot of first-responder vehicles, that type of big truck. It’s for younger kids, actually some groups will come from school on a field trip … we’ve done this for years and I think the kids really like it,” he said. “We’ve actually got a helicopter coming this year.”
Logan also added that the annual Godfrey Family Fun Fest is returning later this summer on July 4 and that it’s “a huge event” for the community.
“We’ve got vendors there, you can get some food, usually we’ve got some bounce houses and some other events going on for the kids to do … and at the end of the day, watch some fireworks, and what kid doesn’t like that?” he said. “It’s a free event to the public, come out and park your car - we’ve got a lot more parking in this new park expansion now.”
Registration is also open for several sports league programs this summer, including a tennis clinic, rookie baseball, and rookie soccer. To find out more or register online, visit teamsideline.com/godfrey.
Logan said they're also planning to host the Great Godfrey Hemp Maze again this year, pending approval from the Godfrey Village Board. The full interview can be watched at the top of this story or on Riverbender.com/video.
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