"It was awesome!"

"I loved the Easter Bunny!"

With sunshine in abundance and squeals of delight from kids and parents alike, the first Earth Day Spring Celebration at Fire Station Park was a hit.

More than 120 children and parents enjoyed visiting with each other, gathering Easter eggs and taking pictures with the Easter Bunny. They also got to hear about plans for improvements to Fire Station Park, including community gardening opportunities.

Fire Station Park, located behind the Chicago Fire Department station at Armitage and Larrabee, is one of several small parks that make this neighborhood special. "This is the first of what we hope will be a series of seasonal events at Fire Station Park," said Rodger Owen, Lincoln Central Association president. "Small parks like Fire Station are gems in our neighborhood, and we're excited to spruce this one up and make good use of it."

Plans for renovating Fire Station Park have been made possible by the in-kind or financial support of the following.

Thank you to:

Lincoln Central Association
Hoerr Schaudt landscape architects
Chicago Department of Transportation
43rd Ward Alderman's office
Openlands
Greencorps Chicago
Home Depot

"The energy and enthusiasm at the festival was wonderful. Our hope is to create a park that families and people of all ages will enjoy and become actively involved with," said Lincoln Central Association Director and Parks Co-Chair Sally Drucker. "We welcome anyone interested to contact us."

Renovation of the park begins this spring with the planting of native perennials, shrubs and trees. Plans to offer community garden plots are also underway. If you enjoy the outdoors or gardening, volunteer opportunities are available to:

• Help maintain the park;
• Plan events;
• Communications and promotion; and
• Create educational programs to take place in the park.

For more information or to get involved with Fire Station Park, contact Sally Drucker at sdsscout@gmail.com.