By Peggy Kelly
Santa Paula Times
If you’ve got some spare change and spare time there’s no better way to spend and use both than at the 42nd Annual Penny Carnival hosted by the City of Santa Paula!
Friday’s carnival will be held from noon to 3 p.m. at the Community Center, located at the corner of West Main Street and Steckel Drive (just west and across the street from Glen City School).
For the little one who have been saving their pennies will find their small change will buy a lot.
The carnival remains one of the best bargains in town and is the traditional way for the Community Services Department to wind up its seven-week Summer Camp program.
Carnival games cost 5 cents to 10 cents each; the prizes are tickets that the kids can later redeem for prizes. Of course with school just around the corner, prizes include classroom supplies for the kids that also help parents with back-to-school needs.
The seven-week City of Santa Paula Summer Camp program provides the children with a full day of activities, including sports, arts, crafts and special activities such as field trips. Hundred of Santa Paula children attend the camp - there are two locations - every summer.
The Penny Carnival is fun for camp staff as well as the kids: the former start setting up early to provide games such as bowling, bean bag toss, soft darts, a dunking booth, lollipop tree, and more, as well as plan the games that will be played during the three-hour event.
Past events have included a High Jolly Slide and fingernail-painting booth where the little girls can go all grown up with some shiny polish to show off to their friends. There will be clowns, snow cones and food; all proceeds from the Penny Carnival - the best bargain in town - will benefit the Summer Camp program.
Each year the program includes field trips that can include Skating Plus, Arroyo Verde, Sky High, Pump it up, and Magic Mountain with other special events and sports competitions.
The annual Penny Carnival is a Santa Paula tradition enthusiastically embraced by families that save up their spare change all year round to give them carnival game buying power.
For more information call Steven De Fratus at 933-4226, ext. 351.
