HOWE `BOUT A SUNDAY IN THE PARK?; EVENT OFFERS FAMILY FUN

What can kids and their parents spend time doing together and with other families have lots of fun? How about a day at the park?

"Sunday in the Park" is a family event with games, contests, crafts and stage entertainment aimed at amusing the entire family. It will be held at the A.C. Brase Arena Building and Arena Park grounds Sunday from 1-4 p.m.

"`Sunday in the Park' presents opportunities for parents and children to have fun and learn together," said Mati Stone, clinical director of the Community Counseling Center, which is sponsoring the event along with Southeast Missouri Hospital and St. Francis Medical Center.

Stone said parents and kids can enjoy crafts and games together and "experience each other in positive ways."

"Positive experiences are important for family life," she said.

Craig Thomas, a Cape Girardeau artist who will supervise a drip-painting activity, said it's a fun way for kids to express themselves. Painters use brushes, paint sticks and sponges to drip or throw paint onto a large piece of canvas.

"More than one person will be working on each painting," Thomas explained. "People don't feel inhibited, especially when they realize its okay to throw the paint."

As many as 20 people may work on one painting.

"I usually start with throwing paint and then coming back with a roller. We can come back again and again, changing the colors, working light to dark," he said.

The biggest challenge is keeping the paint off kids' clothes, he said.

The finished products will be framed and displayed at the Cape Girardeau Public Library.

Thomas has assisted kids with sidewalk chalk drawings at Cape Girardeau's Riverfest. He said the drip painting lets kids use their imaginations.

"I'm mainly there to clean it up if it needs it," he said.

Other outdoor activities are a petting zoo, a kite clinic and sidewalk chalk art.

Indoor activities include carnival-style games, thumb art, a toy flea market, face painting, a photo booth, food booths, paper Easter egg decorations, and Easter egg forest and a treasure tree.

Also featured will be health screenings and informational booths for children and their parents. Optometrist David Bleise will provide vision screenings and referrals. The Cape Girardeau Police Department will be on hand to offer child fingerprinting.

Winners of a drawing contest will also be chosen. Local day care centers and elementary schools have already participated in the contest and were asked to draw a picture of their family during a favorite spring-time activity. Entries, divided into three age groups, will be on display.

Winners selected by members of the Southeast Missouri Council on the Arts will receive a $50 savings bond or $25 cash donated by local banks. Winners need not be present to win.

Stone said the Family Learning Center at the Community Counseling Center is sponsoring the event to help strengthen families.

"Effective parenting skills and improved parent-child relationships are important goals," she said. "`Sunday in the Park,' with its family emphasis, is consistent with the mission and program of the Family Learning Center."

Admission is 25 cents per child but will not exceed $1 per family. Tickets for games and other activities are 10 cents per ticket. There is no charge for outdoor activities. Proceeds benefit the Family Learning Center.