It’s party time in Austin, as everyone’s favorite micro-fest returns this Saturday, April 29th to Pease Park. The 58th annual celebration of Eeyore’s Birthday has become one of the most beloved and interesting events, but one that Austinite’s come out to with passion. So, grab your 100 acre [back]woods and a group of friends to celebrate! Here’s everything you need to know about this Saturday’s festivities, an event that truly helps Keep Austin Weird.
This isn’t your standard Austin weekend event. It’s not SXSW. It’s not any art fair or food festival you regularly find around the city when the spring and summer months arrive. Eeyore’s Birthday is an eclectic outdoor birthday party for a fictitious character that attracts everyone from hippies, to minimally-clothed, to parents with kids, to the group of furries (yes, pets and humans) and odd-balls.
From 11am until evening (roughly 8pm but you know how it goes when a bunch of people are having a good time and there’s no hard cap on time), everything from music circles and chants, to bubbles, face and body painting, tattoos, henna, food and beverages, smoking copious amounts of weed, and an overall beautiful time can be had. From 11 am – 3 pm, the kiddos in attendance can enjoy games, crafts, an appearance from the birthday boy himself, and a costume contest. Adults can also participate in a costume contest, egg toss, and potato sack race. There’s Maypole dancing hourly from noon – 4 pm, and music plays until 6 pm.The best part, Eeyore’s birthday party has always been free of charge while also helping raise money for a few Austin non-profit organizations. The Friends of the Forest Foundation—an organization in town that assists in distributing proceed to charities that support various causes in bettering Austin as a whole.
These organizations include:
- Age of Central Texas
- Austin Bat Refuge
- Blue Dog Rescue
- Chautauqua
- Different Stages
- DriveaSenior
- Emancipet
- Hope Alliance
- Hospice Austin
- Keep Austin Fed
- KIND clinic
- KOOP
- Latinitas
- Lone Star Paralysis Foundation
- Mothers Milk Bank
- Red Arena Horse based therapy
- Shadow Cats
- Texas Gun Sense
- The Vortex
- West Travis County Rural Center
- Workers Defense
It’s fun to be crazy for a good cause. After all, there’s nothing like gathering in Pease Park with 10,000 of your fellow weirdos and letting your creative and weird side flow gracefully in celebration. It’s one of those “if you know you know” situations that, from the outside looking in, seems insane. Take one look at the photo library on their site, and you’re instantly intrigued. Go and you understand. And you won’t ever regret it.
In summary, Eeyore’s 58th Annual Birthday Party will happen again this Saturday, April 29th, 2023 from 11am to roughly 8pm so come on out and join a crap ton of your fellow weirdos for a day of blissful harmony in Pease Park. In case of rain, the birthday celebration will be pushed to the following Saturday, May 6th, 2023.
Featured Image Credit: Craig Busch