Hoping the third date is a charm after 2 rainouts, event chair, Joe Van Deuren said that the Duck Races and Family Carnival will be held this Sunday, June 24 at Homestead Gardens, Davidsonville. The Duck Races and family carnival are held for to benefit the Bountiful Backpacks program that furnishes needy children with weekend food. The family carnival will include carnival games, face painting, rubber duck decoration contest, music, magic food and refreshments. Admission to the events are free. The event’s will begin at 11 a.m. Sunday, June 24, 2018 and closes at 4 p.m.
Any family or individual may sponsor a duck or ducks in the races for $10 donation at the event or at this webpage: http://www.southcountyrotary.org/quacksforbackpacks.php . Prizes will be awarded to the top ducks racing on a special water course built by Homestead Gardens. On two prior dates the festival grounds at Homestead Gardens were so wet the event could not be held in May or early June. “As disappointing as this was,” Van Duren continued, “the Rotary club looked at the delay as an opportunity for us to get more sponsors for the duck races and to invite more people to the event.”
Proceeds will benefit the eight year old Bountiful Backpack program, that provides nourishing weekend food supplies to up to 150 needy elementary school children in South Anne Arundel County, during the school year. The food program and duck race event are sponsored by the Rotary Club of South Anne Arundel County. Unfortunately, hunger is a reality for many children on the weekends here in Anne Arundel County. Although many are fed nutritious meals at school during the week, the weekends at home are often much different. In an effort to sustain these students over the weekend, the Rotary Club, as part of its hunger initiatives, launched the Bountiful Backpack Program delivering about 750 points of non-perishable ingredients for nutritious meals in each of the 38 weeks of the school year. Rotary Club members, and volunteers meet on Thursday mornings at the food pantry in a church to fill the backpacks with food that Rotary has purchased or received as donations. The recipients receive their food as they leave school for the weekend.
