The Downtown Denville Business Improvement District (Downtown Denville) will host the Annual Spring into Downtown Denville event on Saturday, April 11 from 11am-1pm in the heart of Denville’s downtown district. This year’s event is generously sponsored by Lakeland Bank. Carrying on the long tradition of hosting a fun, kid-friendly springtime event, Downtown Denville will also be collecting donations for two autism-related organizations in the local area. Denville SPARK and Celebrate the Children School will be the organizations supported by event-goer donations and increased marketing and public education campaigns throughout April, which is Autism Awareness Month. The event boasts activities including face painting, balloon animals, photos with the Bunny, bonnet making at Art Classes by Mary Shadbolt, performances from the Denville String Band and plastic eggs filled with goodies at most downtown shops. Over 10,000 eggs were handed out at last year’s event. Participating stores are marked with painted puzzle pieces painted by Denville’s SPARK students. There will also be an egg hunt at Rotary’s Santa Land immediately following at 2pm.
The Downtown Denville district began tying the event to Autism Awareness Month last year in 2019. “We thought it was an amazing opportunity to support our local autism-related organizations as the event usually coincides with Autism Awareness Month” said Ryan Gleason, Downtown Denville’s Executive Director.
Spring into Downtown Denville is an event for kids and families and an opportunity for Downtown Denville, parents, and related organizations to educate event-goers about autism, its challenges, its stigmas, and its opportunities for growth and fulfillment. “If we can raise some money and spread the word to even just a few families, it will have been worth it,” continued Gleason
“The Business Improvement District’s mission is to drive more commerce and business to our downtown area, and this event usually draws a great crowd to our local stores and restaurants,” said Gene Fitzpatrick, Downtown Denville’s Chairman of the Board. “By involving our stores, tying our events to worthy causes, and creating a buzz around Denville, we are accomplishing that mission in more ways than one.” Lakeland Bank is once again the sponsor of the event. “We give out free photos with our Easter bunny, hand out eggs, and help raise awareness for Denville SPARK and Celebrate the Children School”. noted Alexis Schoerner-Neinstedt, Branch Manager at Lakeland’s Denville location
For more information about Spring into Downtown Denville, visit www.downtowndenville.com or follow Downtown Denville on Facebook or @dwtndenville on Instagram and Twitter.
