ELLSWORTH -- The residents of Ellsworth will be honoring the Red, White and Blue during this weekend's Family Fun Days festival that spans today through Sunday.
Events get under way in the far southwestern Nobles County community today, with a baked potato feed from 5 to 7 p.m. in the Ellsworth Public School cafeteria, followed by the Little Miss Ellsworth pageant in the school gymnasium.
There are six candidates, ages 6 to 8, vying for the 2010 Little Miss Ellsworth crown. The girls include Brooke Custer, Claire Kramer, Emily Lens, Cassidy Nussbaum, Kendra DeBeer and Torrance Domeyer.
New this year will be the "Minute to Win it" game, starting at 8 p.m. in the school gym. Karla Kvaale, one of the festival organizers, said the game will pit five people against each other to compete in a series of games. Among the planned competitions are stacking Oreo cookies and moving balloons across the stage with water bottles.
"All ages can compete," said Kvaale, adding that there is an entry fee and cash prizes will be paid to the winners.
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The hope is for clear skies on Saturday, as all of the activities are planned outdoors.
The day begins with 7 a.m. registration at the Ellsworth Fire Hall for the 5k walk, run and kids walk. The event will begin at 8 a.m.
At 10:30 a.m., both a volleyball and bean bag tournament will begin in the Ellsworth City Park. More teams are welcome to sign up for the volleyball tournament, and people may call Carla Schilling at (507) 967-2348 to register. There is no pre-registration for the bean bag tournament.
A food stand will open at 4 p.m. at the Senior Citizens Center, and food will also be served outside of the Ellsworth Bar from 4 to 7:30 p.m.
The parade has moved up to 5 p.m. this year, and the inflatables and children's rides will operate from 6 to 10 p.m. on the Midway.
Registration for the kids pedal pull will begin at 6:30 p.m. at the west end of the Midway, with children ages 4 to 11 invited to participate. The pull will begin at 7 p.m., and all participants will earn a free can of pop. Trophies will be awarded for first, second and third place in each age group.
The day wraps up with a teen dance at the Ellsworth Public School with DJ Adam Sieff, while adults are invited to the Ellsworth Bar for DJ "Peer Pressure Sound" from 8:30 p.m. to 1 a.m.
On Sunday, the Ellsworth Fire Department will host its annual pancake feed at the school from 9:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m., with a Community Church Service at the school at 10:30 a.m.
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Remaining events on Sunday take place at the Ellsworth City Park and include rides and inflatables from 12:30 to 2 p.m., Amateur Olympics at 2 p.m., Cow Pasture Bingo at 3:30 p.m. and the big ticket drawing at 4 p.m. Family and friends of Gwen Meester will be selling concessions at the park from 12:30 to 4 p.m. as a fundraiser. Meester is currently undergoing treatment for cancer.
Kvaale invites everyone to visit Ellsworth for the weekend celebration.
"It should be a fun family weekend," she said. "Come on out and enjoy the events."
