By Shelby Siegfried
for the Register
Good old-fashioned family fun brought hundreds to the 49th St. Patrick Fall Festival in McCook Sept. 24, for a day of camaraderie, food, and fellowship.
Supported generously by parishioners, alumni, and the community, the festival has grown into a cherished tradition that unites the young and the young at heart.
While primarily a fundraiser for St. Patrick School, the fall festival is also a delightful, family-friendly gathering, as explained by Rebecca Redl, principal of St. Patrick School.
“It’s an opportunity for our parish and school to open our doors and share a fun afternoon with our community and their families,” she remarked. “It’s truly a day filled with excitement for individuals of all ages.”
The day kicked off at noon with a dinner featuring roast beef and mashed potatoes in the church basement. Outside, more food was available all afternoon at a snack shack, organized by the school advisory board, with burgers, walking tacos, and mouthwatering pies. Made from scratch with real fruit filling, the “famous fair pies” are a staple at the St. Patrick county fair food booth.
The piemakers reunite in the fall to prepare fresh pies for the fall festival and also sell frozen take-and-bake pies, a popular choice for holiday meals.
Parishioners John and Judy Anderson have organized pie-making at St. Patrick for years. Adorned with aprons and armed with their tried-and-true recipes, they kindly share their culinary expertise with volunteer bakers of all ages.
Pie wasn’t just on the menu, it was also on the face of the winner of the crowd-favorite, “Pie in the Face” contest. Attendees cast their votes by contributing change or cash to jars representing brave volunteers, and the highest earner was the lucky recipient of a pie in the face.
Second-grader Hazel Rotter was the top seller of raffle tickets, and threw a pie at St. Patrick pastor, Father Bernard Kimminau.
Outside, children’s games included inflatables, a fish pond, a mini-train ride, a duck pond, a lollipop tree, a color wheel, face painting, and more. People of all ages enjoyed bingo, cake walk, cornhole, and plinko while lively DJ music provided by parishioner Pauletta Gerver filled the air.
Development Director Shannon Corder said volunteers make the fall festival a success.
“Parents, students, parishioners, alumni, CYO classes, teachers, Hispanic Ministry, Knights of Columbus, Altar Society, School Advisory Board, and so many others give their time to make the fall festival a fun event for the parish and community,” she said.
Corder estimated the event encompassed more than 200 volunteers working more than 400 total hours.
Among the volunteers was a group of student-athletes from McCook Community College, who assisted in setting up and cleaning up various inflatables and games. For many of these athletes, hailing from different states and countries, the fall festival provided their first opportunity to explore the McCook community beyond the campus.
A beloved tradition at the fall festival is the mule-pulled hayrack ride, graciously provided by parishioner Lee Jansen. The sound of clopping hooves and jingling harnesses could be heard echoing through the streets surrounding the church as festival-goers enjoyed rides in Jansen’s antique wagon.
A special farmers market-style shopping area known as “CeCe’s Corner” offered a variety of garden produce and homemade baked goods, including burritos prepared by the Hispanic Ministry.
Generous donations from local individuals and businesses provided a wide variety of products, handmade goods, and services for the silent and live auctions. The silent auction featured table after table full of collectibles, gift items, and more than a dozen themed baskets created by the St. Patrick school classes. Bidders also vied for front-row seating at school programs and church events, as well as the coveted “principal for a day” prize.
The live auction included everything from a YMCA yearly membership to Husker volleyball tickets; a Chocolate Lab puppy; and hand-crafted furniture. Auctioneering services were provided by the Jordan Family Auctioneers. The day concluded with a multi-prize raffle drawing which included Husker football tickets, a $500 supermarket sweep, and multiple gift certificates and items from local businesses.
Next year, the St. Patrick Fall Festival will celebrate its 50th year of family fun and community fellowship in McCook.
SNR photos | Shelby Siegfried
