With Luke Skywalker making an appearance for the first time, all three Kutztown School District elementary schools combined efforts for one big spring carnival on Sunday.
‘The children and their friends have a great time at the carnival. It is a fun day for the entire family, friends and the community members,’ said Michelle Miller of the Carnival Committee.
The KASD Elementary Spring Carnival welcomed Albany, Greenwich, and Kutztown elementary school children and their families to the Kutztown Fairgrounds for an afternoon of carnival fun on May 19.
”The turnout was very good, luckily the weather held out,’ said Miller.
In recent years, their volunteer base has been shrinking, making it difficult to run these events, she said. Joining forces allowed them to increase the number of people who were able to volunteer.
‘Combining forces also allowed for new ideas to be implemented, such as the sweet walk, and the ability to provide more amusements such as the rock climbing wall.’
In addition to Star Wars characters from Garrison Carrida walking around the Fairgrounds, activities included a rock wall, moon bounce, large double slide, trackless train, obstacle course, and Bungee Run from Metz Amusements.
Entertainment included performances by the elementary chorus, Marilyn’s Dance Studio, KATCH, Kutztown Elementary Jazz Band, Middle School Jazz Band and Middle School Pop Group.
They wanted to thank Ben McKnight and the Kutztown High School Football team and cheerleaders for setting up and breaking down the carnival.
‘The football team was there the entire day running the games and inflatables,’ she said. ‘The Honor Society also supplied us with a number of volunteers that spent the day with the children.’
Community groups also provided food.
‘The Optimist Club, Virginville Grange and the Kutztown Lions Club all volunteered their time and we are incredibly grateful,’ she said. ‘Many local business made generous donations and made our raffle area a huge success.’
Virginville Grange made funnel cakes, Kutztown Lions Club cooked up sausage sandwiches with their famous Dutch fries, and the Kutztown Optimist Club opened their stand making hamburgers, cheeseburgers and hot dogs.
There also an ice cream truck and cotton candy truck to satisfy everyone’s sweet tooth.
Then, there were the games, from little kid games to bigger games. Winners could choose prizes from the prize table. On the ‘sweet walk’ attendees could play to win some good homemade baked goods.
Also the Kutztown High School Football and Cheerleading held their Drive One 4 UR School fundraiser.
There was also a basket raffle and a Chinese auction.
‘We would like to thank all of the parent volunteers who helped us with this event. Without them, we wouldn’t be able to host the carnival,’ said Miller. ‘Seeing the children having a great time makes it all worthwhile.’
The profits earned from the carnival will be split equally between the Albany-Greenwich PTO and the Kutztown PTO, and is used for such things as field trips, assemblies, and other fun events for the children of each school, said Miller.
