What a mess! Adults, children should bring extra clothes to Saturday event

Cape Girardeau will have a giant mess on its hands Saturday.

The United Way’s 11th annual Messy Morning, a sloppy celebration encouraging children to learn through play, will take place at the Show Me Center from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m.

Admission to the event is free, though attendees are asked to bring canned-food items to contribute to the Southeast Missouri Food Bank.

Messy Morning was born out of the United Way Success By Six initiative, which aims to ensure children are physically, emotionally and developmentally prepared to succeed by the time they reach kindergarten. The morning’s activities are geared toward children 8 years old and younger, with designated areas for infants and toddlers.

The theme of this year’s event is science. Children will have the opportunities to make their own goops, goos and potions, play in the dirt and create hand and footprint art, among other activities.

Less-messy exhibits focused on music, art and animals also will be featured. The Cape Girardeau Public Library will be on hand near the toddler area.

Sharon Anderson, teens services coordinator at the library, said her group will be providing children with messy art activities and will be promoting the library’s summer reading program that is “designed to keep school-age children reading so they don’t lose ground in terms of reading levels.”

Melissa Stickel, a

volunteer for the event, said there will be an area provided through Southeast Missouri State University’s Autism Center that will offer low-key activities for children.

With expected attendance of over 3,000, Messy Morning is expected to be rambunctious, Stickel explained.

The messiest activity of the day comes at the end: the mud run. Stickel said this is the most popular activity of the year.

The name is deceiving, though. It’s less a mud run and more of a shaving cream crawl.

“The children literally crawl through a large section of shaving cream,” Stickel said. “Everyone loves it.”

Event organizers recommend everyone — adults and children — bring shoes that are easy to slip on and off and a change of clothes for afterward.

“They don’t call it ‘Messy Morning’ for nothing,” Elizabeth Shelton, executive director of the United Way of Southeast Missouri, said.

New vendors will participate in the event, including the Girl Scouts, Cricket Wireless and Head Start.

“We’re really excited to have a new infusion of people doing the activities,” Stickel said.

“As part of United Way’s focus on education, income and health, we are delighted to sponsor this annual event,” Shelton said in an email. “Families look forward to this year after year!”

bbrown@semissourian.com

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Pertinent address:

1333 N Sprigg St, Cape Girardeau, MO