Mission to Celebrate Beauty, Bees and Butterflies for Earth Day

Most residents of Orange County know and treasure Mission San Juan Capistrano - perhaps the most beautiful historic landmark in our midst. Established in 1776 by recently canonized Saint Serra, the Mission has served as a cultural icon and destination for locals, tourists, school children and the faithful. It is renowned as a unique historic site for learning, meditating and simply basking in the natural beauty surrounding its centuries old structures and ruins.

Old cart in entrance courtyard, Mission San Juan Capistrano

In honor of Earth Day, the Mission will host its first annual Earth Day Celebration, Saturday, April 20th. The Mission San Juan Capistrano and its Gardening Angel volunteers are planning something new for visiting families - a unique celebration of its bees, butterflies and beautiful gardens. The Mission will be open all day from 9am to 5pm, with key presentations available from 10 am to 2pm.

Renowned local author and citizen scientist, Susie Vanderlip, will be holding family-friendly butterfly presentations at 10am, 11am and 12pm in the Soldiers' Barracks. A nationally recognized speaker, Susie will captivate families with fascinating tales of the monarch life cycle. Signed copies of her photo storybook, The Story of Chester, the Monarch Caterpillar/Larva, will be available in the Mission store.

The Orange County Beekeepers Association will be hosting an information table where visitors can learn everything they ever wanted to know about bees.

Garden station tours will be led by the Mission’s volunteer group, the Gardening Angels, from 10 AM to 1 PM, with free seed packets available for children while supplies last. Seed packets were generously donated by Plant Depot for this event. At 11:30 AM, the Gardening Angels will lead a fruit tree tour around the Mission.

This will be a unique opportunity for kids to use all their senses to enjoy the Mission gardens. They will be invited to stroll through the vegetable plots with volunteers, taste a produce sample or use their noses to identify some of the many herb varieties grown on Mission grounds. Free fish food (supplies are limited) will be available for children to feed the beautiful koi that reside in water-lily studded fountains.

Kids of all ages will enjoy intricate basket weaving demonstrations by Native American basket weavers. Children are invited to create their own adobe building, beaded necklace or other craft at the Mission Matters craft station (open until closing or as long as supplies last).

Earth Day promises to be a full and satisfying day for the whole family. In addition to these special presentations, guests will be enchanted by the Serra Chapel, soldier’s barracks, Mission bells, ruins of the Great Stone Church, and much more. The Mission has thoughtfully provided a welcome respite for visitors who may need a break during all this activity. Families are invited to bring their own picnic lunches and non-alcoholic beverages, and spread their blankets in the Central Courtyard.

Birds, bees, butterflies and beautiful gardens will shine during the Mission's Earth Day Celebration, Saturday, April 20th at Mission San Juan Capistrano. Bring the whole family and enjoy this historic landmark, aptly named the “jewel”of the 21 missions that are an integral part of California's history.