Babylon Kite Festival draws families to Overlook Beach, raises money for scholarships
Pete Liles hung on tight to the spool and guided his 78-inch dragon kite high above Overlook Beach.
He had come to the Town of Babylon Kite Festival because he thought it would be fun for his 5-year-old daughter. But on Sunday morning, it was Liles who was beaming as he navigated the purple and yellow dragon against the fierce wind.
"I feel like a kid all over again," Liles, 38, of West Babylon said.
Families from the around the area gathered on the sand Sunday for the fifth annual Kite Festival, which raises money for scholarships for local high school students. The festival was originally scheduled for Saturday before the rain pushed it back one day.
Yansi Carranza, 33, of West Babylon, flew a shark kite that her 6-year-old son Joshua had picked out.
"I love sharks," he said, as he played in the sand.
Carranza said Joshua and his brother were disappointed when the kite festival was rained out Saturday.
"The kids were itching to get out of the house," she said. "Obviously I'm glad today was such a beautiful day."
Garrett Simulcik, president of the North Babylon Chamber of Commerce, said proceeds from the event would go to eight scholarships of $500 each for students from North and West Babylon high schools.
Simulcik's wife, Diana, came up with the idea for the kite festival during a trip to Washington, D.C. during the pandemic. On her way to a cherry blossom festival, she passed a large group of people flying kites near the Washington Monument.
"I never saw so many people just need to be outside and to feel the air," Simulcik said of the pandemic. "It was so surreal, because when you look out and see all this, you see people smiling."
Kristin Petrino, 39, Merrick, attended the event Sunday with her two children. They were flying a pineapple kite. Other people had kites in the shapes of butterflies, turtles, fish and airplanes.
"We just wanted to come see some kites and try to fly one of our own," Petrino said. "I didn't think it would be this crowded, but it's kind of nice to see all the different ones."
Joshua Needelman covers the Town of North Hempstead for Newsday. A Long Island native and University of Maryland graduate, his work has appeared in publications including The New York Times and The Washington Post.
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