Geek the Library a success

More than 75 people attended Saturday’s finale of the “Geek the Library” promotion at White Pigeon Township Library.

The Geek the Library program started in June and was a campaign that allowed people to talk about subjects they like. The concept, according to library officials, was to remind people that information about their favorite subjects is available at the library.

Eight artists and entertainers were on hand and kept the mood festive.

Mendon Kiwanis Showboat tonight

The Mendon Kiwanis Showboat kicks off for the 56th time this evening, the first of a three-night run.

“White Christmas” is the theme of this year’s presentation, which begins at 7:30 p.m., with additional shows staged at the same time Friday and Saturday at Mendon Elementary School’s gymnasium.

Dale Eickhoff, head of this year’s Showboat, said rehearsals have been taking place for the past month. A group of about 40 members are a part of the cast, which will present about 15 songs.

Cost is $8 in advance and $10 at the door. All proceeds go to the Mendon Kiwanis Club, whose members use the money to support scholarships for high school students and other school-related benefits.

Winners of Scarecrow Fest

Winners of the annual Scarecrow Fest, staged during Sunday’s Three Rivers Fall Color Tour, were announced this week by the St. Joseph County Parks and Recreation Department.

A lower-than-usual number of entries took part in the event at Meyer Broadway Park, where nearly 150 votes were cast.

Overall winner was Centreville’s Larry Brueck, who also claimed an award for scariest scarecrow.

Funniest scarecrow was awarded to the entry created by the Three Rivers Nazarene Crossfire Youth Group.

Most creative scarecrow honors went to Country Reindeer Farm, for its creation, “The Rock.”

There were 11 entries in the 2012, weather-hampered contest.

Redesigning mural mall

Good attendance at the fair

More than 142,000 people attended the St. Joseph County Grange Fair over the course of its seven-day run last week, officials from the fair board announced Monday.

Despite rain Friday night and Saturday morning, a strong crowd to the Saturday evening Alan Jackson concert helped push the weekly attendance to a point that it surpassed 2011 attendance by 2 percent, according to fair manager Bill Johnson.

In a media release issued Monday by Johnson, vendors were satisfied with the week and an overwhelmingly positive response was fielded regarding Tuesday’s monster-truck show and Wednesday’s demolition derby. Johnson said efforts would be made to bring back both attractions in 2013.

The fair’s average weekly attendance is about 150,000.

Weather a factor in attendance

The 162nd St. Joseph County Grange Fair is in the books, and organizers of the event said weather – as it usually is – was a key factor in attendance.

Though a final figure for the seven-day event won’t be available until sometime today, a sunny Saturday afternoon coupled with more than 5,000 people attending the event-ending Alan Jackson concert helped make up for a wet and cold Friday night.

The Centreville-based fair is the second-to-last county fair in the state and typically experiences a variety of extreme weather conditions. Fair officials said this year was no exception.

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