St. Pat's Fall Festival to feature new attractions

New attractions join the old favorites at this year's St. Patrick's Fall Festival. Four games from Fun Jumpz will be available for kids of all ages. They are bungee basketball, jousting, an obstacle course, and the bungee run. In addition, young racing fans will be able to sit in an IMCA stock car or McCook Speedways' top mini-truck and have their pictures taken. The auction will include the Cupcake Treasure Auction, which will reward five cupcake buyers with very special items.

The annual fundraising event for the parish will be held this year on Saturday, Sept. 20, and Sunday, Sept. 21.

Saturday's event will be held in the church basement, from 7 to 9 p.m. It will feature fresh barbecued pork sandwiches, sloppy joes, hot dogs, pie, and homemade ice cream. People are welcome to come for the meal or dessert or just the bingo. Bingo prizes will include cash and gift certificates; the prize for the blackout game will be $100.

Sunday's events will be held at the church grounds at East 4th and G, from noon until 4 p.m. There will be games, food, an auction, and the drawing for the raffle. There will be a repeat of two events that were new last year -- the Duck Regatta and the Money Machine.

The Duck Regatta will feature numbered ducks "swimming" in a stock tank. Numbers will be sold in advance and at the Festival. One numbered duck will be drawn out of the tank, and the owner of that number will split the amount raised by selling the numbers.

Chances will be sold for the opportunity to spend 15 seconds in the Money Machine, which is a booth that is filled with $1,000 in bills of various sizes up to a hundred-dollar bill. The money is blown around by fans, and the lucky winner gets to keep all of the money that he or she can grab out of the air. Chances can be bought at the Festival.

Cow pie "bingo" is in its fifth year at the Festival. Squares will be sold in advance and at the Festival for this activity, which will begin at 1.

Games at the Festival include the fish pond, duck pond, lollipop tree, color wheel, and face painting for the younger children. For the older children and teens there will be ring toss, tennis ball toss, basketball and football throws, and plinko. People of all ages seem to enjoy bingo, cake walk, skee ball, and Sinko. There will be pony rides and kiddie train rides available for the children.

The craft and garden booth will feature crafts, baked goods, and garden produce.

Entertainment from noon until 3 p.m. will be provided by DJ Express.

Food will be available from two sources: the dinner in the church basement, and from the snack shack. The dinner will feature roast beef, ham, mashed potatoes (real, not boxed) and gravy, vegetables, and a salad bar. Dinner will be served from noon until 1:30. The cost is $7.00 for adults, $3.50 for ages 5-12, and free for under age 5. The snack shack will feature hamburgers, cheeseburgers, hot dogs, sloppy joes, pie, and ice cream. The snack shack will be open from noon until 3:30 p.m. Snow cones will also be available all afternoon.

Fans of Husker volleyball are again in for a treat at the Festival auction. The auction will include a ball autographed by the members of the nationally-ranked Husker volleyball team.

The auction has two parts: a silent auction and an oral auction. The silent auction features dozens of items donated by businesses, individuals, and organizations. The items include new merchandise, craft items, and gift baskets. They will be on display tables in the gym, beginning at noon. The oral auction will feature special items, such as the autographed Husker volleyball, Husker football tickets, a carriage ride for prom or wedding, an airplane sightseeing tour, a Go-light, a Y membership, and more. The oral auction will begin at 3 p.m. p.m. in the school gym.

The grand prize for the raffle is a trip for two to the Nebraska/Kansas game, with excellent seats. It includes an overnight stay at the Cornhusker Hotel, along with $100 spending money. Other prizes include a Nintendo Wii game console; gift certificates from Lord's, Schmick's Market, Norm and Sharon Timmerman, and Brown's Shoe Fit; a portable DVD player; and a handmade kaleidoscope. Tickets are available from parishioners, at the parish office at East 4th and G, at Saturday evening's barbecue and bingo, and all Sunday afternoon up until the drawing (which will be held at the end of the afternoon).

The proceeds from the Fall Festival benefit the education programs at St. Pat's. These include the school, the CCD program for children grades K-8 who don't attend St. Pat's, CYO for grades 9-12, and adult education programs.