Thank you to all the visitors and volunteers that participated in the GSTC’s first annual Turtleween to make it a great success! It was great to see so many children (and parents) dressed in costume! Costume contests were held every hour so everyone could see these wonderful costumes! Two brothers had the most creative, homemade turtle costumes, which they colored themselves! They definitely won our hearts! (bottom right)

Visitors were ‘trick-or-treated’ to turtle-inspired, environmentally friendly games, crafts and activites including the sea turtle survival game and turtle toss (bean bags that is, not real turtles!), find a hatching, mystery boxes and paper plate turtles, face painting, pumpkin painting and cookie decorating! For those that didn’t have a treat bag, no worries, they got to make their own!

Some of the staff dressed in costumes with an educational message: What do different species of sea turtles like to eat?

(L to R): Dr. Bill Irwin (Director): SQUID-FAVORITE FOOD OF THE KEMP’S RIDLEY SEA TURTLE; Stefanie Ouellette (Education and Field Coordinator): SPONGE-FAVORITE FOOD OF THE HAWKSBILL SEA TURTLE; Alicia Marin (Public Outreach Educator): SEA GRASS-FAVORITE FOOD OF THE GREEN SEA TURTLE; Sarah Mathias (Education Intern): JELLYFISH-FAVORITE FOOD OF THE LEATHERBACK SEA TURTLE; and last but not least, Cade Stepp (JIA)-BYCATCH. Ok that’s not a food item for sea turtles, but it IS a sea turtle conservation issue!

Thanks again to all the volunteers: Sonya & Laurel Russell, Sally Rose, Richard Chewning (4-H), Mark Miller, Kathy Smith, Chad & Megan Glasscock, Ruth Ann Blackwell and daughter, John Miller (JIA), Cade Stepp (JIA)…we couldn’t have done it without you!!!

Stefanie Ouellette
Education and Field Coordinator