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DOWAGIAC  — The Young Professionals of Greater Dowagiac have an adventure in store for their fifth annual Mommy and Son event.

The YPGD’s Photo Scavenger Hunt will take place from 2 to 4 p.m. Sunday, Oct. 25 in downtown Dowagiac.

The outdoor event will begin and end on the grassy field next to City Hall. YPGD will not be providing food and drink this year due to the ongoing pandemic, nor will it be charging for this year’s event. Instead, the organization will be accepting donations.

“This has been in the works since the beginning of summer,” said YPGD member and event organizer Jessica Shank. “Since we’re not providing food and drink and other activities, we thought it would be more acceptable for the event to be donation-based. We had many activities to toss around and thought this one would be a great way for moms to create lasting memories with their sons while keeping everyone safe. We want to thank the city for letting us use the green space for our event.”

Participants will receive a list of things to look for before the start of the event. Once the hunt begins, mother and son duos will explore downtown Dowagiac on foot and photograph themselves with the items on the list using their cellphones. Once finished, the duos return to the field next to City Hall.

The organization will provide first place prizes for age groups infant to 5 and 6 to 12, but Shank insisted that participants are not required to treat the event as a race.

Founded in 2016, the annual mother-son event was a spinoff from the Young Professionals’ Daddy-Daughter Snowball, which is hosted every February. The success of the Snowball compelled the organization to see if its members would be interested in an event aimed at mothers and sons.

“We’ve had great feedback in past years,” Shank said. “There aren’t a lot of events geared toward mommies and sons, and especially this year, families are looking for activities to do together.”

Blue Print Photography will be on site with a photo booth. The YPGD encourages everyone to wear orange and black to represent the colors of Dowagiac Union Schools.

“Each year, we’ve done a different theme,” Shank said. “This year, our theme is the hashtag ‘Dowagiac United.’ It’s a great time to come together as a community.”