Arkalalah’s 92nd year is kicking off today and organizers are excited for you to come out and join in the fun. The executive committee has been visiting live at 95.9 Bob FM each day this week.
Chairman Clayton Pappan, Damon Mendoza, Jason O’Toole, Sean Hankins and Lance Givens are the members of the executive committee. That committee works with Tasha Bucher to help oversee the many people that make the festival possible.
Concessions opened at 11 this morning.
Here are items of note the committee mentioned as Arkalalah begins.
- Tickets in the balcony remain for the Queen Alalah Coronation on Friday night. You can buy yours at the Ark City Chamber.
- Rikki’s Market, Smokehouse Grill LLC, Snack Shack, Feed Lot BBQ, It is Finished and Big G’s Food are new concessions vendors for this year’s event. The committee says this year’s Arkalalah will have more concession vendors than ever before.
- The grand marshal of the parade is Carol Hearne. She will be interviewed on the Get Up And Go Show Thursday at 8:15 a.m.
- The soap box derby is a new event for this year and has maxed out at 15 entries. You can go watch at Summit and Chestnut.
- There are 10 marching bands for Saturday’s Big Parade and the contest that follows at the high school.
- Carnival pre sell tickets are available at the chamber until noon today. You can save money.
- Fireworks begin at 8 tonight and are followed by the night parade. It runs from Spruce to Adams. The night parade has 25 entries.
- The four corners at Summit and Fifth remain the most consistently popular food booths at Arkalalah. Those corners are Kiwanis with Chicken and Noodles, the Jeffy Pups stand, Knights of Columbus and their German sausages and other favorites and the Optimists with their pork burgers.
- The big parade is expected to have around 60 entries. After missing the parade last year, the Shriners are back for this year.
- Helicopter rides are back again. They happen on Saturday.
