Fall Festivals a hit in PL
As in years past, the local community has gone all out again this year in honor of fall and the upcoming Halloween celebration. Community members participated in a variety of activities and fundraisers celebrating the harvest season.
Rio del Oro and Cobblestone Schools staged their annual fundraiser and harvest festivals on Oct. 10 and 24, respectively. The festivals were both well attended and boasted, food, games and fun.
Attendees could try their hand at many games including the traditional cake walk, basketball hoops or ring toss, and this year the schools incorporated some new events including the “Fear Factor Challenge” and the popular “Duck-Drop, Quack” Pies were also flying from students who got a rare chance to see their favorite teachers or principal covered in pie filling.
The harvest festival events also featured a raffle with prizes, with proceeds going to the schools’ student body field trips for the year.
“I think it’s great that the school puts these types of events on for the community kids,” said Alicia Stampfli, mom of a Rio Del Oro first-grader and cake-walk winner. “These events give the kids something fun to do and help out the school’s fundraising efforts at the same time.”
Fall fun was also on tap at the second annual pumpkin patch hosted by local Cub Scouts Pack 513 at the park in the Lennar development.
Kids and parents alike could be seen searching for just the right pumpkin at the patch or coming out in their Halloween finery to enter the costume contest. The pumpkin patch event featured a bounce house, face painting, golf putting and a soccer goal kick.
As they did last year, the Cub Scouts continued to maintain their focus on community and hosted a fundraiser for local individuals in need. Any family that donated a can of food to the pack’s food drive received a free pumpkin to take home and three free game tickets.
“We do the Pumpkin Patch Festival and Food Drive each year as a way to introduce our neighbors to the fun world of scouting,” said Angela Diesch, pack committee chair and mom.
“The food drive is a critical part of the pumpkin patch because there are so many organizations that need extra help this time of year to feed families in need and it is important for us to do our part.”
The proceeds from the pumpkin patch will go to the Cub Scouts pack for camping supplies, awards, patches, achievements, and other miscellaneous program needs. The pack is also trying to put together a “campership program” that will help low-income families get involved in scouting by helping to pay for their uniforms and materials.
The pack has done several fundraisers throughout the year, including the pumpkin patch and hopes to continue these annual events as a way to get more kids participating in Cub Scouts and Boy Scouts, and as a way to stay involved in the community.
Contact Plumas Lake correspondent Michele Perrault at (530) 483-3664 or e-mail her at mperrault@plumaslakelife.com.
