Red, yellow, and orange kites manned by kids of all ages, lined the morning sky at Nolanville's Monarch Park on Saturday, April 9. The kites and butterfly wings worn by the kids in attendance were given out to celebrate the Monarch Butterfly, the guest of honor at the second annual Monarch Festival.
Kerry Fillip, Nolanville Economic Development Coordinator and a certified Texas Master Naturalist, has been working hard for two years to find a fun way to showcase the importance of the monarch butterfly to the City of Nolanville.
"We want to educate the community on the importance of butterflies and their effect on pollination," she said. "Their numbers are down about 80%, this is greatly due to insecticide usage."
The free and informative festival was attended by an estimated 450 people with fun activities for all ages. It featured a petting zoo, face painting, and music and dancing.
New activities to this year's Monarch Festival included tech demonstrations created by students from Texas A&M University and a helicopter landing courtesy of PHI Air Medical.
Each spring, Monarch butterflies migrate through Texas from Mexico; thousands and thousands of butterflies make the trek. After they make it back, they look for flowers such as milkweed or Greggs Blue Mist to lay their eggs.
"Nolanville is fortunate that we live right in the migratory path of the Monarch Butterfly," says Fillip. "Knowing this, the city has worked hard to plant and cultivate plants Monarchs love the most."
This is the second year for this event, and organizers don't see signs of it stopping soon.
"Last year, when we started this event, I didn't know where it would go or look like, and it couldn't have become a better surprise," Fillip said of the Monarch Festival.
"This festival continues to evolve to the next stages, getting bigger and better every year," Fillip said. "It's a true community event and a highlight of springtime in Nolanville."
JENNIFER SHIDLER
Jennifer Shidler, Community Outreach Coordinator, writes about and documents community and social events for the City of Nolanville. Contact her at jshidler@nolanvilletx.gov or 254-698-6335