File Photo by Kristin Rey Johnson Pictured is last year’s event to celebrate St Patrick’s Day, which saw the Chadakoin River turn green in Jamestown. This year’s ceremony begins at 11 a.m. on Saturday, but other events begin at 10 a.m
The Jamestown community prepares to celebrate St. Patrick’s Day by hosting the annual “Make the river green” event in the city center.
Patrick Smeraldo, owner of Collaborative Children’s Solutions, said the event will start at 10am on Saturday with Irish music and activities for children to participate and enjoy before the official ceremony begins at 11am
“There are booths or tables with different agencies or companies that help me through the year.” said Smeraldo.
This year activities include face painting, tie-dyeing, crafts and a variety of prize-winning games for children in the community. In addition to these activities, Therapy Dogs United will have therapy dogs at the event, the Jamestown Jackals will be present at the event and the Prendergast Library will be highlighting their newcomers “creative workshop” Amenities available in the library.
“There are about 10 exhibits or booths or tables, whatever you want to call them.” Smeraldo said “where people are either doing crafts with groups of kids or playing a simple game for a small prize or something.”
Smeraldo told The Post-Journal that there will be a scavenger hunt throughout downtown Jamestown that community members can participate in during the day from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. 10 local businesses will participate in the scavenger hunt.
“All you have to do is be by the river”, he said. “There will be a table where you can get a sheet of 10 clues for 10 different businesses and it will take you to the businesses and then you go in and when you find the one that matches the clue, go for it a photo or find an item that the company might have highlighted, scan your phone for the QR code and then your listings will be registered and we will contact you for some prices afterwards.
Smeraldo said the purpose of the scavenger hunt is to encourage people to do it “Mix” Explore downtown Jamestown and explore what the city and local businesses have to offer. He explained that the scavenger hunt offers an opportunity to increase “pedestrian traffic” Saturday from the Chadakoin River and “through downtown.”
While activities will be available from 10am to 12pm the official is “Make the river green” The ceremonial portion of the event on Saturday will take place at 11am
“At 11 o’clock the lucky goblin will use his shillelagh and dip it in the water and turn it green.” Smeraldo said “But the stalls stay open from 10am to 12pm with Irish music and everything.”
Asked about the meaning of “Make the river green” Event, Smeraldo explained that the event is “gigantic” for the community of Jamestown.
“To be honest, it could be bigger.” he said. “I mean we could do a lot more and I would hopefully do a lot more next year but I think it’s huge. It gets people to the Riverwalk, which is great, and it gets people out.”
As the weather is expected to be in the 30s, Smeraldo said the event should not go ahead “freezing.” He encourages the community to take advantage of free children’s entertainment, connect with other community members, participate in the various activities and scavenger hunts, and support local businesses and agencies in Jamestown.
“My goal is to lure people into stores, restaurants and places to shop locally and promote downtown,” he said. “If we can haul a few thousand people downtown to watch a leprechaun turn a river green and get all these positive results out of it, I’m all for it.”
to have experienced that “Make the river green” Eventing with his own children and working at an elementary school, Smeraldo said he is aware of how important St. Patrick’s Day is and how much fun and entertainment the event brings to the community event.
Smeraldo said that according to Parks Department manager Dan Stone, Jamestown is one of only three cities in the United States to have a “Make the river green” St. Patrick’s Day event.
“There’s no reason not to get out and see what’s in your community and the best part is that it’s free.” he said. “You don’t have to pay a meter on a Saturday, it’s free. The entertainment is free. The children can participate in various events and see things of the community. It’s not too early in the morning. It’s Saturday morning at 10am, what do you do besides nothing?”
Following the “Make the river green” Smeraldo said he hoped attendees would take the opportunity to show downtown or have lunch at one of the many downtown restaurants.
Mayor Eddie Sundquist told The Post-Journal that the city is “very excited” for the St. Patrick’s Day event and for the appearance of Jamestown’s Leprechaun, especially as the town is one of only three communities to celebrate by changing the color of the river. Sundquist added that the city is changing the color of the Chadakoin River with an eco-friendly liquid, not a traditional dye.
According to Sundquist, one of the “The Biggest Things” The city is trying to offer more events for families with children in Jamestown.
“We as a city have lost our youth department over the years, we’ve lost the individuals who help plan events and so we’re really trying to flip some of the events that we have and make sure they’re really family-friendly.” events and that not only can people enjoy our parks and our downtown and our other parts of the city, but they can also have something to do on the weekends that they normally can’t do,” he said. “This is obviously a tradition of greening the Chadakoin River, so we’re excited to be able to continue that.”
