GRAVETTE -- Despite heavy rains that continued throughout most of the evening, attendance was high at Friday evening's fall festival at Glenn Duffy Elementary School. Organizers expressed surprise that so many turned out in the inclement weather, but guests continued to splash through the puddles in the parking lot and come out for an evening of fun.
The chili supper held during the event was a big attraction as many bought tickets and came to the cafeteria to be served bowls of chili, complete with Fritos and shredded cheese. The meals, served by Gravette school board members Matt Croxdale, Brad Harris and Robyn Lovell, included drinks and dessert. Tonia McEvans, manager of the Glenn Duffy cafeteria, and Arissa Blakeslee, manager of the high school cafeteria, prepared the chili.
The costume contest was a highlight of the evening and attracted several entries. Contestants introduced themselves and modeled their costumes in turn. Judges had a hard time deciding but, after some discussion, finally announced the winners. Three prizes were given to Bella Hartman and her brother Micah Hartman, dressed as a Gothic couple all costumed in black; Ember Crawley, who dressed as the character Pennywise, the clown in Stephen King's novel "It"; and Cooper Cradduck and his sister Isabelle Cradduck, dressed as a dinosaur trainer and his trained dinosaur. (The dinosaur promptly obeyed when Cooper commanded, "Sit.")
A wide variety of games were set up in classrooms throughout the school. Guests were able to buy tickets and participate in many activities. The cakewalk was one of the most popular activities, with parents and students lined up down the hall to get a chance at their turn. Six winners, and later in the evening 10 winners, were chosen during each round of the cake walk and were able to choose from a large assortment of baked goods, including cakes, cupcakes, muffins and cookies.
Many redeemed tickets for playing games, and tickets could also be redeemed for a number of snacks, with popcorn, cookies, candy and soft drinks among the choices.
A silent auction featuring a number of beautiful gift baskets, home decor, beauty products, hobby items and gift certificates for area restaurants and services continued throughout most of the evening. Winners were announced near the close of the festival, and several took home multiple prizes, with proceeds going to the Glenn Duffy Parent-Teacher Organization.
A drawing was also held for VIP car line passes with two winners who are able to skip the car line in the afternoon. One winner was for Nov. 7 through Dec. 16 and the other for Jan. 3 through Jan. 31.