Bok Tower Gardens will hold its 99th annual Easter Sunrise Service at 7 a.m. on April 20.
The service will feature a message from The Rev. Mackay Smith of the First Presbyterian Church of Lake Wales.
The entrance gate, visitor center, and The Shop at Bok will open at 6 a.m. Admission will be free from 6 to 8 a.m. Donations are encouraged, Bok Tower Gardens said in a news release.
The service will include music performed by Brazilian cellist Diego Carneiro, a Rotary International Peace Fellow. Bok Tower Gardens Carillonneur Geert D’hollander will begin the celebration at 6:30 a.m. with seasonal compositions performed on the 60-bell Singing Tower carillon.
Bagpiper Ben Pugh will perform the processional, and Dr. Jonathan Reed of Lake Wales will accompany on piano. The service will conclude with a carillon bell finale.
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Shuttle service will not be available. Attendees are encouraged to bring personal wheelchairs or mobility carts. Dogs are also not permitted at the service, though they are welcome to enter the Gardens after 8 a.m.
The Easter Sunrise Service has been an annual tradition since April 17, 1927, making it the longest continuously running event at Bok Tower Gardens. The Rev. G.W.R. Cadman formally dedicated the Sanctuary during the first service.
The Blue Palmetto Cafe at Bok Tower Gardens will offer an Easter Breakfast Buffet. The cost is $21 for adults and $11 for children (2-12). The buffet is available for pre-purchase online at boktowergardens.org and served from 7:30 to 9:30 a.m.
After 8 a.m., general admission to the Gardens is $20 for adults and $10 for children ages 6-17. Members and children five and younger are admitted for free. El Retiro will be open from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., and tours of the historic home can be purchased for an additional fee.
This article originally appeared on The Ledger: Bok Tower Gardens in Lake Wales offers free admission for annual Easter Sunrise Service
Reporting by Lakeland Ledger / The Ledger
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