June 12, 2024 3:50 a.m. 

In the KQEN Cultural Spotlight:

Elkton Community Education Center is holding its annual Blooms and Butterflies celebration this Saturday.

The event begins with a 5K Butterfly Run/Walk along the Umpqua River at 9:00 a.m. It continues throughout the day with kid’s activities, live music and a wide range of artisan vendors and information booths.

ECEC Executive Director Marjory Hamann said, “Blooms & Butterflies is a great way for families to celebrate the end of the school year and check out all the fun, free activities ECEC has during the summer”. Hamann said, “Its also the beginning of the butterfly season, and people really get into it by dressing like a butterfly when they come to the event”.

Run registration opens at 8:00 a.m. and is $30 for adults. Kids ages 12 and under can run or walk for free. A drop-in yoga session will be available so runners and walkers can stretch and cool down when they return to the festival.

Musician Katie Sontag will lead a family singalong at 10:45 a.m., followed by a butterfly costume contest. Other music will be available throughout the day.

Attendees can explore local history at Fort Umpqua, a life-size replica of the Hudson’s Bay Company’s southernmost fur-trading outpost from the mid-1800s and observe native butterflies in the ECEC Flight Room throughout the day. The Elkton High School FFA will host a barbecue fundraiser at lunchtime. ECEC’s student-run café will serve deli sandwiches, espresso, homemade baked goods and more all day.

Youth ages 1-18 can get a free meal between 11:30 a.m. and 1:30 p.m. during the event and throughout the summer.

More information about the ECEC is available at: https://elktonbutterflies.com/