Maramec Spring Park’s annual Pollinator Festival will be returning this year on Saturday, May 2, from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. at the park.

The family-friendly event will celebrate conservation with games, crafts and entertainment. Organizations will present educational information about natural resources and vendors will sell native plants, nesting boxes, birdhouses, art and other natural items.

Entry to the park costs $7 per car and there is no additional cost for the festival.

The Missouri Wildflowers Nursery will be on site selling native wildflowers and there will be a plant bingo game with the chance to win native plants to take home.

Missouri River Bird Observatory and Conservation Federation of Missouri will have booths set up to teach visitors about natural resource preservation.

Pollinator Festival will also offer plenty of activities for kids, like a gnome scavenger hunt and a play area set up by Forest City Village School.

Live music will be played from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. by the Ozark Snappers, a local acoustic band that blends traditional country and bluegrass with subtle touches of psychedelic rock. The group features three-part harmonies by Chris Case and Billy Watkins on the flat-top guitar, anchored by Jackson Case on upright bass.

Food and baked goods will also be available for purchase during the festival.

The event first got started a few years back when Park Director Wes Swee and Interpretive Services Coordinator Kendra Swee received grant funding to help restore native pollinator habitat in the park. The festival helps teach the public about the environment and usually draws around 300 people each year.