By Camden Crook, Staff Writer

It’s the first Saturday in November, the weather has finally cooled and a brisk sense of excitement fills the air. As you pull into your elementary alma mater, memories start flooding back.

You remember winning your first cake at Mrs. Davis’ cakewalk and begging your parents to bid on the special lunch date with your teacher at the silent auction. But most of all, you remember the past carnivals and the sense of nostalgia that surrounds them.

Autumn on the Outer Banks is jam-packed with fall festivities. One festival, in particular, draws crowds from near and far: the Kitty Hawk Elementary Fall Carnival. This event has brought friends, families and faculty together for the past 60 years. 

“People plan their vacations around Kitty Hawk having its fall carnival. It really brings the community together,” Principal Greg Florence said. “The PTA raises important revenue and the kids and families always have a lot of fun. It’s really just a great environment.”

The community’s love for Kitty Hawk Elementary is evident in the large crowds that attend the carnival each year. While most may anticipate the ever-changing list of fall activities, one of the festival’s main attractions is not its evolution, but its lack thereof. 

Since the school opened in 1959, Kitty Hawk has hosted its annual carnival. Despite the passing of time, very little has changed. Carnival-goers still enjoy “taking a cakewalk,” playing bingo and perusing treasures at the silent auction. These timeless traditions are what make this event so unique.

“It just works, year after year after year. Over the years, a little bit has changed, but the general model hasn’t and I think that’s the neat thing about it,” Florence said.

To residents, the festival is a fun Saturday to spend with friends and family. However, to the men and women behind the event, the carnival means so much more.

“Our PTA doesn’t sell wrapping paper at Christmas, popcorn in the fall and cookie dough in the spring. Our parents aren’t continuously bombarded with things for their kids to sell,” Florence said. “It’s a one-time shot and then we’re funded for the rest of the year.”

Being the sole fundraising event of the year, the carnival’s success is extremely important. Its profits provide reading materials for students and instructional materials for teachers. 

“One year it was computers for the classrooms, another year it was playground equipment and another year it was reconditioning the landscape outside,” Florence said.

The carnival is an opportunity for people to give back to the community while supporting the school and having a little fun, especially for the teenagers who return year after year.  And though the fun never fades, new opportunities may arise for the returners to benefit from the event.

“Our kids always come back for the carnival. Even the high school kids come back for the carnival,” Florence said. “So why not ask them to put in a couple of hours so they’re not just giving back to their school but they’re also getting credit for it.”

Senior Taylor Stuart has attended the carnival since she was in elementary school. And since beginning high school, she has enjoyed volunteering her time while giving back to her old school. Stuart has worked face painting, bracelet-making and helped run the silent auction. This year, aside from volunteering, she’s looking forward to a more sentimental aspect. 

“I’m looking forward to spending it with my friends. We’ve always gone together, ever since elementary school,” Stuart said. “This is probably the last time we’ll all be able to volunteer for it since we’re seniors, so I’m excited to do that for the last time.”

Being the 60th anniversary, this year’s celebration on Saturday (Nov. 2) is not one to miss.

“This year for the 60th, there’s going to be live bands, and new rides and activities. Because it’s an anniversary, the PTA is trying to really go all out this year,” Florence said.

Do YOU have any favorite memories of the Kitty Hawk Fall Carnival? Share them in the comments below! (A valid email address is required to leave comments but is not published.)

Senior Camden Crook can be reached at crookca0109@daretolearn.org