Duck “adoptions” have begun for the third annual Great American Duck Derby, which will be held Aug. 7 to help fund an infant and toddler playground at Hinton Park in Petal.
During the adoption period for the derby – which is held by Petal Excel By 5 and the Petal Education Foundation – participants can purchase any number of rubber ducks at various locations around Petal. Adoptions begin at $10 per duck.
“The duck derby seems to fit our idea and our thinking toward the very young child,” said Leahne Lightsey, executive director of the Petal Education Foundation. “Of course, Excel By 5 is here to provide parents with the tools to raise children from 0-5 (years of age), so they can be healthy, happy and ready to learn when they go to school.”
Adopters can purchase a single duck or Quack Packs (six ducks for $60), a Quacker’s Dozen (12 ducks for $120) or a Flock of Ducks (20 for $200). If an individual adopts a flock, they get three free duck adoptions, while a Quacker’s Dozen nets two free adoptions and a Quack Pack earns one free adoption.
The ducks will be on sale until the day of the race at Grand Central Outfitters, the Petal School District Central Office, The Coleman Center for Families and Children, the Petal Area Chamber of Commerce office, and other businesses around town. Participating businesses will feature an inflated yellow duck or sign in front of their shops.
In addition, the ducks can be purchased online at www.petaleducationfoundation.org.
Although the Great American Duck Derby is usually held on the East Hardy Street bridge over the Leaf River, this year’s event will take place in the lazy river at Grand Paradise Water Park in Collins.
“That’s way safer than what we’ve been doing,” Lightsey said. “It’s really unpredictable as to the amount of rain that we might get, and of course the more rain we get, the swifter the (Leaf) River is, and it makes it difficult.
“(We) were out in that water last year and it kind of got a little swift on us, and it’s not worth our lives.”
The ducks will be individually numbered, and on the morning of Aug.7, they will be dumped into the lazy river to race to a marked finish line. The first duck to the finish line will win $2,000, while second place will win $1,000 and third place will win $500.
The first place prize will be donated by Steven Kelly of Alfa Insurance; Carter’s Jewelry will handle the second place prize, and Mark Graham and Holly Wicktom will donate the third place money.
The proceeds from the derby will go toward the upcoming infant and toddler playground, which has been discussed for more than two years to supplement the existing play areas for older children at Hinton Park.
“We know that a child’s motor skill development is ultra-important to all later learning,” Lightsey said. “When we happen to be at Hinton Park, we would see moms sitting on benches actually restraining their toddlers because the other playground is just way too big.
“So why can’t we have both? Why can’t we have a place where these babies can move around and experience that freedom of climbing and rolling and swinging and playing in a little playhouse?”
So far, Petal Excel By 5 officials have approximately $41,000 saved for the playground, with a goal to make $25,000 at this year’s derby.
“We’re going to have a small fence around this playground so mom or dad won’t have to worry about the child running into the parking lot or anything like that,” Lightsey said. “We’re trying to look at all angles, so that this will be a terrific playground in Petal, Mississippi to draw visitors from all over.”
