CARIBOU, Maine — Caribou Days is just around the corner and is slated to offer a plethora of activities for all ages.
Caribou natives will recognize the event as an expansion of the “Caribou Cares About Kids,” a long-running parade put on by the city. The Caribou Cares About Kids parade is slated to start at 6 p.m. on Aug. 4 and is now one of many aspects of the Caribou Days festival.
Christina Kane-Gibson, Caribou’s marketing and events coordinator, said the city began rebranding the event before she arrived, and that many still refer to the festival as Caribou Cares About Kids.
“The Caribou Cares about Kids Parade is still where the heart of the event lies, but this is an effort to make it more encompassing and offer something for everyone,” she said.
Kane-Gibson says Caribou will kick off the activities at 10 a.m. on Aug. 4 with tie dying at the recreation center.
“Kids can come in and tie dye a shirt to wear to the parade later that night, and we’ll also have hot dogs,” she said, adding that local restaurant Burger Boy will be sponsoring dogs this year.
Later that night, the parade will celebrate Caribou’s 50th birthday as a city, and the members of the recreation department will judge floats and award trophies to those that best celebrate the city’s semicentennial.
“We’ll have all kinds of people in the parade,” Kane-Gibson said, “and afterward the Shriner Clowns will entertain kids at Teague Park, followed by a showing of Zootopia sponsored by Cary Medical Center and Pines Health Services.”
The movie is officially slated to start at 8:15 p.m., though Kane-Gibson said it may start slightly later depending on the length of the parade.
Festivities will continue into Saturday, Aug. 5 with water slides, bounce castles, and unicorns at Teague Park.
“The Saturday event will be more geared toward kids,” Kane-Gibson said. “We’ll have a lego tent with the ‘Lego Kids,” who were really popular at a recent Thursdays on Sweden. Kids can come in and play with legos, and then get a picture with the ‘Lego Kids.’”
Caribou Public Library will host a book exchange, where children can trade in books they read over the summer. United Way of Aroostook will participate by donating new books for the exchange.
“We’ll also have a medieval group hosting a “Knights and Ladies” tea party with a sword demonstration,” Kane-Gibson said. “To go along with that, we’ll have pony rides and a unicorn you can take a picture with.”
The fantasy themed party also will include an event in which children can paint “fairy doors.” Beetle and dragonfly doors also are available for youngsters who don’t fancy fairies.
Kane-Gibson was hired just four months ago to take the reins and organize Caribou’s events, and has been putting together Thursdays on Sweden street festivals with the help of local department heads all summer. While Caribou Days is similar, Kane-Gibson says the main difference is that it’s not vendor based and, with the exception of food, all activities and events are free to enjoy.
“We just want to appreciate the next generation here in Caribou and give them some fun stuff to do in the park,” Kane-Gibson said.
