SWEET VALLEY — According to people in the Sweet Valley area, carnival food and amusement rides make for a perfect start to the unofficial start of summer this weekend.
The annual Sweet Valley Fire Memorial Day Fair kicked off Thursday and runs through Monday — Memorial Day — when the fire department hosts a parade.
Heather Lake, of Wilkes-Barre, brought her 5-year-old daughter, Ayla Harvey, to the fair. For Lake, the weekend party is a tradition.
“I grew up in Sweet Valley,” Lake said. “It’s nice to support local.”
As the fair opened Saturday, Ayla went straight for the face painting.
“She can’t walk by a face painter,” Lake said.
Patiently waiting for her blue, white and glittered face to be completed, Ayla said she couldn’t wait to ride the amusement rides — but not the Ferris wheel.
Watching Ayla get her face painted were ice cream scoopers Jordan Cragle and Caidie Leach. Cragle volunteers with the fire company.
Both Cragle, 15, and Leach, 11, said they enjoy helping out.
“This kind of work is fun,” Cragle said.
Their favorite part of the weekend is the parade, they added.
During the parade, Cragle said, he sits in a fire truck and plays music while throwing candy out the window for kids. Leach noted she rides in different apparatuses, depending on who has a need.
But if visiting the pair, Cragle suggested trying the chocolate ice cream, while Leach recommended the black raspberry.
From ice cream sales to vendor fees to ride tickets, every little bit helps, Deputy Fire Chief Stan Davis said. “It’s one-third our annual income.”
Davis said most area festivals and fairs are held after the department’s all-volunteer fair because so many neighboring fire departments participate in Sweet Valley’s parade.
“We have 50 (pieces of) apparatus,” Davis said.
The parade begins at Ross Elementary and proceeds to the fire department grounds on Main Road, which doubles as the fair midway.
Davis is hopeful dry weather will prevail the remainder of the weekend.
“I think it’s a 50 percent chance of rain,” he said. The weather hasn’t been all that great so far. Thursday, he noted, was a washout and Friday had some precipitation as well. “Let’s hope we’re on the right side of the 50.”
Outside, in the middle of the Nonweilers Amusements rides, was a goldfish stand.
Lucas Steltz and his sister, Kendra, bought a bucket of ping-pong balls to try to toss in a bowl to win it.
In the end, Lucas, 10, won a fish, and Kendra, 14, was shut out.
After some coaxing from his father, Jeffrey, Lucas proclaimed that his goldfish would be named “Goldie,” noting that he’s won at the game before.
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