For more than 30 years, Mother’s Day has been synonymous with Duckling Day in the Boston Public Garden, and brings families from all over the City to celebrate mothers, spring, and don their duck gear.
This year, Duckling Day could not happen in person because of COVID-19, but the Friends of the Public Garden and the Boston Parks and Recreation Department made sure people could still celebrate virtually.
A small program was broadcast on Facebook Live at noon this past Sunday, May 10, and featured words from Friends of the Public Garden’s Executive Director Liz Vizza, Mayor Marty Walsh, a video featuring photos from past Duckling Days, and a special reading of Robert McCloskey’s “Make Way for Ducklings.”
“In my lifetime, I have never seen the parks be more important than they are today,” Vizza said. “They are a place that we can be alone together. We can go and be renewed by the beauty of nature in the springtime environment that we have these days. We can be socially distant, and yet, enjoying a place that is free and available to each and every one of us.”
Vizza thanked the City of Boston’s Parks Department staff for their continued partnership and work on keeping the parks safe and clean, especially recently.
“So even through we’re not together; it’s a little different every year, we’re together virtually and we’re really happy to be able to bring this program to you,” Vizza said. “Like Mrs. Mallard and her ducklings, we will march on.”
Mayor Walsh also expressed his thanks and gratitude for still being able to come together virtually even if the celebration isn’t the same as it has been.
“I want to thank the Friends of the Public Garden for continuing to make Duckling Day a special event in our city, even during this difficult time of physical distancing,” he said.
“I look forward to warmer, and better days where we can all gather in our parks again. We’re working every day to keep people healthy and get life back to normal. We’ll all get through this together, and we’ll get back to celebrating each other very soon.” The 20 minute virtual Duckling Day video can be viewed on the Friends of the Public Garden’s Facebook page, and Duckling Day crafts to complete at home can be found on the Friends of the Public Garden website.