Palmer Park will be crowded next Saturday, September 10, with people enjoying the 18th annual Palmer Day celebration. The festival promises to be a day filled with old favorites and new fun, says event co-chair Joanie Ernzer. 

 

The day kicks off with the 5K Run. Registration begins at 8 a.m. with the run starting at 9 a.m. This is the run’s 10th anniversary, and prizes will be awarded at its conclusion.

 

The Top 20 Car Show also begins at 9 a.m. and runs until 3 p.m. The popular event has been a part of Palmer Days for the past eight years.

 

The parade starts at noon with around 70 entries from local businesses, organizations and a few politicians.  Prizes will be awarded for the top three floats, and the event will be broadcast live on AM 800 WVAL.

A new attraction this year is comedian Don B, a “professional goofball” whose interactive show mixes comedy with magic, unicycles and juggling. After appearing in the parade, Don B, who is a national unicycling champion, will be entertaining the crowds until 4:30 p.m. 

 

Another new Palmer Day attraction is Austin the balloon guy. Austin creates balloon animals while on stilts, and will be performing from 1:30 to 3:30 p.m.

 

Kids’ games will be open from 1 to 3 p.m.; new this year for older kids is the chaos obstacle course and rock wall.

 

Bingo once again runs from 2 to 4 p.m., and the beanbag and horseshoe tournaments also begin at 2 p.m. 

 

Throughout the day a variety of great food sponsored by area non-profits will be available, and the Clear Lake Lions beer garden will be open. Sixteen new picnic tables have been added to the park, so attendees will have plenty of places to sit and enjoy the festivities.

 

Festival goers are encouraged to visit the park pavilion, where photo albums and videos of past Palmer Days will be available for viewing.

 

The raffle this year is better than ever, said Ernzer, with $6,500 in great prizes to be won. Drawings start at 2 p.m. and are held every half hour until 5 p.m. Ticket holders must be present to win, and have an hour to claim their prize.

 

DJ Bob Weber will be providing music from 1 to 5 p.m. At 7 p.m., Ernzer said the Palmer Day committee is excited to welcome back Outside Recess, back by popular demand. The band will be playing high energy rock ‘n roll music until 11 p.m.

 

Registration forms for the parade, 5K run and the beanbag tournament can be found at Brigg’s Lake Store, McDonald’s Meats, Kinitski’s, and the Palmer Days website at sites.google.com/site/palmerday/.