Oliver
Earnest
January 13 is National Rubber Duckie Day!
Rubber Duckies were invented in the late 1800s along with the invention of rubber. In the 1970s, Rubber Duckies became hugely popular when Ernie sang his Rubber Duckie Song on Sesame Street. (thanks to creator Jim Henson!)
Rubber duck (now made out of vinyl plastic) races have become popular methods for fundraising. Money is donated to the organization sponsoring the race. A duck is assigned. All the ducks are dumped into a waterway. The first duck to cross the finish line wins a prize for its sponsor.
The largest race takes place in my hometown--Cincinnati. Ohio. The annual Freestore Foodbank Rubber Duck Regatta began in 1994. Over 100,000 ducks race. This fundraiser has netted over $4.6 million since its beginning.
January 13 is Rubber Duckie Day because it is Ernie's rubber duck's birthday.
LINKS:
RubaDuck everything you can possibly think of to know about rubber ducks!
giant rubber duck floats around the waterways of the world
rubber ducks history
20,000 rubber ducks lost at sea
a couple other races:
Australia: The Great Brisbane Duck Race each year raises funds for the PA Research Foundation. 30,000 ducks raced in 2011.
UK: The annual Stockbridge Duck Race is held in Stockbridge, Edinburgh to raise money for local charities. 1000 rubber ducks are released.
PS: Katz Tales inspired my post with her facebook post about The Cats of Wildcat Woods blog post celebrating Rubber Duckie Day with photos of cats and duckies. Go see! cute!
photos by me © 2013
