Summer campers and their parents braved stifling heat at the first ever St. Mary’s Park Bronx Youth Fair on July 19,
Everyone attending was able to enjoy different tables of arts and crafts set up, free water and pizza, face painting, music by a DJ, tennis lessons, and even a cage with two hens and a canoe brought in by Friends of Riverside Park. Other organizations such as the Bronx Children Museum, El Museo Del Barrio, Aspira, and Free Arts NYC.
Bronx resident Liz Perez brought her eight- and- ten-year-old daughters, ages 10 and 8, for the arts activities. She helped her daughters decorate two paper masks at the El Museo del Barrio table with stickers and glitter.
“We’re going to be here all day”, she said. “I’m not too worried about the heat, there’s water for them to cool off and then keep having fun”.
Shade Barnett, another local resident came to the park with her 5 year old daughter, and was caught by surprise by the event.
“We’ve been here all morning since they started and we’re going to stay”, she said.
The Mott Haven-based advocacy group, MASA, set up a table, hoping to get the word out about their organization’s efforts to help the neighborhood’s booming Mexican population.
“We are very community minded, we’re always searching for opportunities to get out meet the community,”,said the group’s executive director, Maria Perez, as she helped to set up a table.
One summer camper, Kashiyana, 5, parked herself alongside her friends at a craft table and attacked paper with paint and glitter.
“I like to draw every day,” she said holding up her picture, spraying glitter everywhere.
“I’m going to do everything else that the park has too,” she advised, motioning towards the face painting tables.
Although the temperature rose into the mid-90s, children continued to play, undaunted by the heat, taking refuge in shady spots and standing under the sprinklers. The DJ played pop hits like Gangnam Style, sending the children under the sprinklers into a frenzy of synchronized galloping and hopping.
City Councilwoman Melissa Mark-Viverito thanked the volunteers and organizations for taking part in the first of what she hoped would be many Youth Fairs to come.
“This is something we hope we can do every year here in the South Bronx,” she said.
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