WHITE – White will throw its annual Pioneer Days bash this weekend, which keeps adding attractions and drawing people into the fun, according to Jennifer Olson, president of the organizers.
The theme this year is “Get Your Game On,” and they have plenty of games to choose from.
The event runs four days and has taken over the whole town, Olson said.
“It’s a whole town celebration,” she said. “This is just a chance for people to get together.
“We try to provide something for all age groups. That is really important to us, that there’s something for everybody,” Olson said. “Even if it’s sitting in a lawn chair in the shade in the park and watching people go by. That’s always fun, too.”
For more information or to register for some of the events, visit the website at www.whitesd.com/pioneerdays online.
Thursday
Pioneer Days kicks off on Thursday with a cookout from 11:30 a.m.-1 p.m. with K-Country 102.3 and The Ranch 910 AM.
“It’ll be on the lawn of First Bank & Trust, which is on Main Street. That is sponsored by numerous local businesses from White,” Olson said.
Friday
Friday brings the games: The Pioneer Days Golf Tournament, which is an all-day event at Six Mile Creek Golf Course, and the Bean Bag Tournament on Main Street, which starts at 7 p.m. with a 6 p.m. sign-in.
Both are popular activities, Olson said.
They had to increase the number of participants in the golf tournament, and the roster is full. The bean bag tourney has become “a major draw for Pioneer Days in the last few years … brings in tons of people,” Olson said.
If music’s more your thing, Lefty’s Sports Pub will have a beer garden with karaoke from 9 p.m.-1 a.m. with Unique Entertainment with Jeff Hanson.
Vendors will have food available, too.
Saturday
Saturday activities run all day, starting at 8 a.m. That’s when the co-ed softball tourney starts.
The 5K Fun Run/Walk starts at 9 a.m. at Deubrook High with an 8 a.m. registration and is sponsored by the Deubrook Alumni Association, which brings in a lot of people.
“That’s all ages. Kids through adults do it,” Olson said.
The four-on-four co-ed volleyball tourney starts at 9 a.m. in Arthur Graslie City Park.
“Sometimes it’s hard for people to get six (players). Four’s easier and four’s enough,” Olson said.
The parade begins at 11 a.m. with line-up and judging at 10:15 a.m.
“We have a really good parade in White,” Olson said. “That runs all the way down Main Street, around the park, then skirts Fifth. They can sign up or just show up.”
A lot of activities will be in Graslie Park, including the car show, which starts at noon. Registration goes until 1 p.m.
Also starting at noon is the 18th annual Chili Cook-Off, which “is probably our core event of the day,” Olson said. “Everything kind of revolves around the chili cook-off.”
It’s popular with cooks as well as party-goers.
“Last year, we had 28 pots of chili. They start cooking at noon with public tasting starting at 3 p.m. Each tasting cup of chili costs a quarter, so you can taste them all if you want to,” Olson said.
Kids will have lots to choose from, including a sand dig, inflatables, laser tag and a plate drop.
“Some of the activities have water, so we always tell people, make sure you bring their suits and towels,” Olson warned.
Bingo in the park runs from 1 to 2:30 p.m. and “that’s a pretty big draw,” Olson said.
The pigeon auction is at 1:15 p.m. First pigeon to make it back to Watertown is the winner.
Car show and chili cook-off winners will be announced at 4 p.m.
Heading into the evening hours, the Deubrook Alumni banquet starts at 5:30 p.m. with social hour at the school.
The dance will feature the Roxbury Band at McKnight Hall from 9 p.m. to 1 a.m. There’s free admission and plenty of air conditioning.
“That’s huge for us! It gets to be a long, hot day in the park ... It’s kind of nice to go in somewhere where it’s airconditioned,” Olson said.
Sunday
The co-ed softball tourney starts at 8 a.m. at the athletic complex, as does the pancake breakfast by the American Legion at McKnight Hall.
The event wraps up with the demolition derby at 3 p.m. on the west side of town. Kids 10 and younger are free. Participants can pre-register on the website.
“This is the second year for the demolition derby. We didn’t have it for over 15 years, but we brought it back last year in ’17. It is growing. At last count, I know we have over 40 cars coming,” Olson said. “That’s gonna be a pretty big thing for us, we’re pretty proud of that.”
Olson said White’s demo derby is a little different.
“Ours is major small town, people sit on bleachers. We bring in big trailers to sit on, so bring lawn chairs. Very small-town feel to it, which that’s what we’re about,” she said.
Keeping it small town
White’s population is about 500 people, and that small town atmosphere is why all the people involved with Pioneer Days work so hard to keep it going.
“The goal of Pioneer Days is to bring neighbors and friends and socialize and relax and have a good time,” Olson said.
It harkens back to a time when everyone would “come to town on Saturday nights, have pop and sit on Main Street and visit,” Olson said. “We don’t do that anymore.”
She figures there are around 50 people that help put Pioneer Days together each year, plus another 25 like chili judges who help out.
“We’ve had certain people, they’ve done the same job for 20 years,” Olson said.
While she admits it’s a lot of work, they get a lot out of it, too.
“It’s so much fun,” Olson said. “You look around that weekend and you see all the fun everyone else is having. You see neighbors talking to neighbors, having people come back that don’t live here anymore. People enjoy it and it’s a fun weekend.
“I think it’s just the people, I really do. I think it gives you kind of a warm glow to see that, when everybody comes together like that,” Olson said.
And that warm feeling will continue into the future: they’re already making plans for White’s 135th anniversary during next year’s Pioneer Days.
“We’re gonna have a bigger year next year,” she promised.
Contact Jodelle Greiner at jgreiner@brookingsregister.com.
Register file photo: Participants prepare their dishes during last year’s chili cook-off at White Pioneer Days. This year’s four-day festival starts Thursday.
