Rainy day limits Fall Fest attendance

A soggy Saturday weighed heavily on this year's attendance at the Historic Downtown Dexter Association Fall Fest. Sparse morning crowds picked up slightly toward noon just prior to the annual Young Realty Pie Eating Contest, but showers once again dampened spirits later in the day.

Several vendors, including local church groups and artists, braved the weather and remained set up on Stoddard Street throughout the day.

"We probably had about half the crowd that we usually have," said organizer, Donna West of the Historic Downtown group. "For the kind of day it was, it was a good crowd, but of course it was down."

Vendors were in shorter supply this year, West said, and with the forecast as it was, a handful of the scheduled vendors backed out,making for slim pickings along the usually packed Stoddard Street.

Because of the rain, Rainbow Inflatables were unable to set up their amusements, and so there were few attractions for youngsters, taking away from the overall downtown crowd even more.

It's a chance you take, said West, when planning the Fall Fest each year.

The Annual "This Run's 4 Vaughn" 5K walk/run was also affected by the rain, but a significant group of participants did manage to complete the fun run through Dexter, concluding through the downtown Fest area. Proceeds from the event are annually presented to an area family facing the challenges that a diagnosis of ALS brings.

"This year's ALS Ice Bucket Challenges helped us a lot locally," said organizer Scott Kruse.

Total proceeds from the run will be announced at a later date.

The Quilters Guild once again had an array of quilts on display at the Senior Center. Winners by popular vote will also come at a later date.