The Coastal Bend Bays Foundation has been hosting Earth Day-Bay Day since 1999 to raise awareness and appreciation of our coastal waterways and habitats, and to promote environmental stewardship for our Coastal Bend natural resources through family-friendly and hands-on exhibits, activities and demonstrations. Each year, a local artist has been selected as the Earth Day-Bay Day artist of the year with a unique poster developed to share the message of Earth Day-Bay Day.
Earth Day-Bay Day originated in April of 1999 when Jennifer Lorenz, the Coastal Bend Bays Foundation Executive Director, worked with the City of Corpus Christi to hold a ceremony at the Hans and Pat Suter Wildlife Refuge to honor Pat Suter and her late husband, Hans, for their lifetime of service to protection of the area’s natural habitats. The ceremony lasted about an hour, was invitation only, with 100 attendees. This was CBBF’s first Earth Day event. There were no posters or vendors or exhibitors, nor was it open to the public. That May, Teresa Carrillo was hired as the Executive Director of CBBF, and she had a different, broader vision of how to celebrate Earth Day. Her concept was of a community celebration bringing together local groups, such as Audubon Outdoor Club, Sierra Club, the Corpus Christi Geology Association, teachers and student groups, university groups, and vendors, and to open it up to the public for free. Thanks to Dave Sullivan, then President of the CBBF Board, they named it Earth Day-Bay Day. They began searching for funding and thanks to the Coastal Bend Bays and Estuaries Program the event began to take form. With that established she began the planning of the biggest environmental related event in the city. One of the key components to this event is our distinct poster that is given out for free every year and thanks to the generosity of Vicki Allen, who gifted the use of her beautiful art for the first 2 years, the poster was established. Then it was time to widen the field and an art contest was a natural idea so, we sought art from a variety of artists and sources. The event has definitely and grown from its inception, if you have had the opportunity to attend this event in the past you might know that it has taken place at different locations throughout the years such as Hazel Bazemore, Blucher Park, the Naval Air Station in Corpus Christi, to Cole Park to now this perfect spot, Heritage Park!
