WGBY Kids Fan Day at the Basketball Hall of Fame features live kids’ music, animals, screenings, and creativity stations hosted by more than a dozen community organizations.
Springfield, Mass. (October 15, 2019) - WGBY Kids Fan Day puts fans of popular educational TV programming front-and-center with a full day of activities at the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m., Saturday, Nov. 9.
With over a dozen education-focused community organizations — not to mention live PBS KIDS characters like Clifford the Big Red Dog, Curious George, and The Cat in the Hat — public television station WGBY is hosting a PBS KIDS fan fair that showcases award-winning educational content and provides a family-friendly day of creativity and fun.
This year, WGBY is thrilled to announce Chris Eliopoulos, co-creator, executive producer and illustrator of the new PBS Kids series Xavier Riddle and the Secret Museum will join in the fun on Kids Fan Day. Based on the children’s book series Ordinary People Change the World , Xavier Riddle introduces kids to inspiring historical figures and the character virtues that helped them succeed. WGBY will present two exclusive screenings of the new series during Kids Fan Day. Mr. Eliopoulos will also host a drawing workshop for kids and sign books at the Odyssey Bookshop’s pop up bookstore. Xavier Riddle and the Secret Museum will make its premiere on WGBY and PBS Kids digital platforms on November 11.
“I’m so excited to visit Springfield so I can share our new PBS KIDS series Xavier Riddle and the Secret Museum with the fans of WGBY,” says Elipoulos. “Every historical hero in our series was once a kid like you and me. It’s important for our kids to see that they can be heroes, too, by learning character skills such as kindness, persevering in the face of adversity, and making and accomplishing goals. From the time I was a kid, I dreamed of becoming a cartoonist and worked hard at it every day. Now I get to use my skills on the series to show kids that anyone can accomplish amazing things and change the world!”
Mr. Elipoulos began his career working for Marvel Comics and has worked on literally thousands of comics. He’s written or illustrated comics including Cow Boy, Franklin Richards: Son of a Genius and Pet Avengers . He’s the author/illustrator of a couple of graphic novels, Cosmic Commandos and Monster Mayhem and illustrates the Ordinary People Change the World series.
The popular children’s entertainer Mister G returns this year with two bilingual performances, and a kid-friendly reading from his latest book, Señorita Mariposa . Señorita Mariposa , offers a captivating look at the extraordinary annual migration of monarch butterflies from Canada to Mexico. The book provides a jumping-off point for children to learn about climate change and immigration, and is meant to spark dialogue about these important, topical issues.
Ben Gundersheimer is a graduate of Amherst College and the Berklee College of Music. He has released ten albums as 'Mister G' and received numerous accolades including a Latin GRAMMY Award and five Parents’ Choice Gold Awards. He tours internationally performing in both English and Spanish.
“WGBY Kids Fan Day is tons of fun for families, and it’s an amazing venue for children’s education in the region,” says Marie Waechter, director of community relations and events for New England Public Media, the new alliance of WGBY and New England Public Radio. “The activity stations, which are hosted by our education-minded community and cultural partners gives children and families a chance to share what they love about PBS KIDS. This promises to be a fun day for families in western New England — all in support of quality children’s programming.”
CLIFFORD THE BIG RED DOG, CURIOUS GEORGE, MUSIC & ICE CREAM
Learning can be fun — that’s the message of WGBY Kids Fan Day . To help bring that message home, WGBY is joined by the PBS Kids favorites, Clifford the Big Red Dog and Curious George along with The Cat in the Hat (courtesy of The Springfield Museums). Children are welcome to meet the characters for a friendly wave, hug, or photo opportunity. A free photo will be provided to any child arriving in costume dressed as their favorite PBS KIDS character (photos courtesy of Mirror Mirror Interactive Photo Booths).
Learning can also be tasty. A free kid-sized ice cream, courtesy of Friendly’s, will be provided with every ticket.
PARTNERS & SHOW-THEMED STATIONS
WGBY Kids Fan Day presents over a dozen creativity stations, each themed to a PBS KIDS show and hosted by a local community or cultural partner. For example, The Peg + Cat station will be hosted by Community Music School of Springfield with drumming and other musician activities and the Wild Kratts station by UMass Amherst Laboratory of Medical Zoology.
WGBY’s Community Engagement and Education Department will host an interactive gaming area, complete with tablets children can use to explore various PBS Kids apps and games.
Along with WGBY and WGBY Kids, other participating organizations include 94.7 WMAS. Child Learning and Development Lab at Amherst College, Community Music School of Springfield, Eric Carle Museum of Picture Book Art, Friendly’s, Mirror Mirror Interactive Photo Booth, Pocumtuck Valley Memorial Association, Springfield City Library, Springfield College & Community Arts, Springfield Education Association, Springfield Museums, TEXT 413 Families, UMass Amherst Laboratory of Medical Zoology, UMass Center at Springfield’s The Healthy Development Initiative, and The Zoo at Forest Park and Education Center.
CHILDREN’S LITERATURE & PICTURE BOOK ART
The Odyssey Bookshop will present a “pop-up bookshop,” showcasing PBS KIDS show themed children’s literature and explore the stories enjoyed by millions of children worldwide and book signings with Chris Eliopoulos and Mister G.
R. Michelson Galleries will display original artwork with hand-drawn renderings of Arthur by Marc Brown.
WGBY Kids Fan Day is sponsored by Curry Honda, Hood Milk and Friendly’s.
For a full list of PBS KIDS show-themed stations and their respective community partner pairings, visit wgby.org/fanday/activities .
TICKETS ONLINE & AT THE DOOR
WGBY Kids Fan Day is a ticketed event, with proceeds supporting children’s educational programming and public television in western New England. Tickets are available now online and will also be available at the door the day of the event.
Tickets are available at wgby.org/fanday/tickets .
· Adult (12 Years and Older) — $10
· Youth (12 Mos. and Under Free) — $5
ABOUT NEW ENGLAND PUBLIC MEDIA
Based in Springfield, Massachusetts, New England Public Media is the new alliance of NEPR (New England Public Radio) and WGBY-TV. Through a deep commitment to independent local journalism, trusted educational content, inspired cultural offerings, and civic engagement, NEPM endeavors to share new voices and inspire new conversations. It provides audiences with a broad array of local and national programs across all media -- TV, radio, online, and mobile, including PBS and NPR programs as well as locally produced series, podcasts and specials. Its four digital TV channels, and two radio networks present news, jazz and classical music, and cultural programming. New England Public Media is a community-supported, independent non-profit organization. nepm.org
ABOUT WGBY
With four digital television channels, video on demand, and streaming video, WGBY brings quality public broadcasting programs to audiences across western New England. WGBY is available over the air on digital channel 57-1 and on cable throughout western Massachusetts and northwestern Connecticut and can be seen in high definition in western Massachusetts at Comcast 857, Time Warner 1807, Charter 782, and over the air on channel 57. wgby.org
MEDIA CONTACT:
Vanessa Cerillo
Senior Director, Marketing and Communications
New England Public Media
WGBY-TV and New England Public Radio
413-735-6605
vcerillo@nepr.net
