Just a short drive north of Oz, in Sheboygan, lies a magical place to bring children:  Bookworm Gardens; a place where your favorite childhood stories come to life, surrounded by beautiful gardens and ponds.  

Opening May 1st, the Bookworm Gardens is a wonderful place to visit on any day, but they have a series of great events throughout their 2016 season that deserve special recognition.

Kick start their 6th season with the Daffodil Dash 5K Run & 1M Walk! Register for either a 5K trail run (non-chip timed) OR a non-competitive 1 mile walk around Bookworm Gardens and the UW Sheboygan Campus. The cost is $20 per person, or $50 for a family of four ($10 for each additional participant). Proceeds benefit Bookworm Gardens.  

This year, Bookworm has added a Book Club just for grown ups, which will meet on May 10th from 6:30-8 p.m.  The first book is How to Raise a Wild Child: The Art and Science of Falling in Love with Nature by Dr. Scott Sampson, the creator of the popular "Dinosaur Train" show on PBS.  The Book Club will continue to meet every second Tuesday of the month; it's free, open to the public, and food and drinks will be offered during the discussion.

This summer, Bookworm Gardens has a variety of cool Summer Camps for children in preschool through 6th grade.  Registration is open now.  Questions? Contact Cate, Education Manager at [email protected]. 

Volunteers, donations, and supplies are always welcome and needed at Bookworm, from Tour Guides, Readers and Gift Shop Attendants to yarn, birdseed and paper towel.  Visit Bookworm Gardens at 1415 Campus Drive in Sheboygan.  For more information, call: (920) 287-7895  or visit the website:  bookwormgardens.org

There's still time to register for the Junior Woman's Club of Mequon-Thiensville's 11th Annual Turkey Trot!  This is the group's major fundraiser for the year, and will help raise money for the Thiensville Village Park and Portal Inc., Advocates of Ozaukee, and the Interfaith Caregivers & COPE Hotline.  

The 5K Run-Walk will begin at 9 am on Thanksgiving morning.  New to the event this year is a costume contest.  Awards will be given for the Best Group/Collaborative, Best Holiday Costume, "Best of Run" Costume, and Best Kid's Costume.   Kids 10 & younger may participate in the FREE 50 Meter Gobble Gallop at 10 am.  Food donations for Family Sharing and toy donations for Toys for Tots will be collected, as well.