The Great Football Toss, where kids & adults can throw small footballs at a target on the ground to win one of four bicycles, will be a new event at EasterFest in North Topeka this year. Cake Walks will also be something new, and it will give kids and adults a chance to win cakes, pies, cupcakes and restaurant gift certificates. The Easter Bunny will back to take pictures with the kids this year too! The Big Egg Hunt, facepainting, pony rides and food trucks are always among the most popular attractions, as well as laser tag, archery, bubble soccer and of course the free entertainment.
After a larger-than-ever crowd last year, EasterFest 2018 will return to N. Kansas Avenue and Garfield Park in North Topeka on Saturday, March 31, the day before Easter.
Over three thousand people attended last year to watch the parade, visit the Fun Fair, listen to live music, visit over 70 vendor booths and take part in the Big Egg Hunt or other activities.
Each year, dozens of churches, businesses and non-profit organizations take part in the parade, and dozens more set up vendor booths and kids’ games as part of the family fun fair. There have been lots of floats with a variety of themes, and all shapes and sizes of other vehicles, as well as walking entries such as schools, military groups, marching bands and more. The event is coordinated by C5Alive, a Christian leadership offshoot of the Capital City Christian Chamber of Commerce (C5).
The Easter Parade will begin at 10 a.m. on North Kansas Avenue at the railroad tracks in the NOTO Arts District and proceed to Garfield Park. This will be followed by the Big Egg Hunt in the Garfield Park playground area, which is put on by First Southern Baptist Church. The church youth spend several weeks on Wednesday evenings filling about 4000 plastic eggs for the event.
From 10 a.m. to 3 p.m., vendor booths, food trucks and kid’s activities will be happening all over Garfield Park, as well as inside the shelterhouse and in the gym. This year, even more churches, non-profit organizations, schools and local businesses are expected to enter floats and marching bands, etc., in the parade, as well as set up activity booths at the fun fair.
The Family Fun Fair will consist of many activities geared toward children and families, most of them at no charge. There will be carnival games, inflatables, crafts, a mini train ride, sports activities and picture with the Easter Bunny, as well as rides on a full-size draft horse. There will also be a Health & Fitness Fair inside Garfield Gymnasium with demonstrations of gymnastics, dance and more, as well as vendor booths with a variety of health & fitness themes. Live performers will be on hand all day, such as jazz bands, dance troupes, praise bands, solo artists, street entertainers and more.
Sponsors and participants are still needed for the Vendor Market, Entertainment Stage, Food Court and Health Fair. Volunteers are also needed to help with the entire event.
Major sponsors for the event include Integrity Insurance, Peggy Beasterfeld Tax & Accounting, Metro Voice News, Knox Signs, Confectionary Disasters, Capital City Flooring, Soul Fuel Photography, Carnival Guy, Solid Rock Sound Machine, Health & Wellness Magazine, The Pad Restaurant and First Southern Baptist Church.
For more information, visit www.TopekaEasterParade.com, email info@C5Alive.org or call 640-6399.
