Ducks in a row
CHERYL SCHWEIZER | Hagadone News Network | UPDATED 7 years, 10 months AGO
File photo Release the quackers! The ducks hit the course at last year’s annual Duck Derby. This year’s event is Saturday.
Senior Reporter Cheryl Schweizer is a journalist with more than 30 years of experience serving small communities in the Pacific Northwest. She began her post-high-school education at Treasure Valley Community College and enerned her journalism degree at Oregon State University. After working for multiple publications, she has settled down at the Columbia Basin Herald and has been a staple of the newsroom for more than a decade. Schweizer’s dedication to her communities and profession has earned her the nickname “The Baroness of Bylines.” She covers a variety of beats including health, business and various municipalities. | June 21, 2018 3:00 AM
MOSES LAKE — Aaaand, they’re off! The ducks will be racing to the finish line – okay, all right, they’ll be floating to the finish line – in the annual Duck Derby from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturday at Cascade Park. The Duck Derby is a fundraiser for the Boys and Girls Clubs of the Columbia Basin.
The duck derby is sponsored by Horizon Credit Union. Proceeds go to help fund the club’s day to day operations.
Each duck – not real ducks, of course, they’re plastic ducks – is marked with a number and they’re all dumped overboard into Moses Lake. The first duck to reach shore wins, and so does the person holding that number. First prize for 2018 is $1,500; second place is four tickets to a Seattle Mariners game, and third place is $500. Prizes will be awarded to other finishers, ranging from gift certificates to local businesses to gift baskets.
Admission is free, but donations will be accepted.
The ducks traditionally hit the water about noon, but of course the Duck Derby is more than just a plastic duck race. Many community organizations sponsor booths in the park, with games for kids. There’s always a face-painting booth, other games ranging from a fishing pond to beanbag and ring toss games, and craft projects. The Moses Lake Fire Department will bring a fire truck for kids to look at, and the Moses Lake Police Department and Grant County Sheriff’s Office will be there as well.
Each booth sponsors games and crafts, and for the adults the booths have information about the business or organization and its services.
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