Serving Gogebic, Iron and Ontonagon Counties
Serving Gogebic, Iron and Ontonagon Counties
By P.J. GLISSON
Wakefield — A Saturday Family Fun Day in Wakefield was heavy on the fun as hundreds of people gathered in VFW Post 9084.
The event was in lieu of the annual fishing tournament held by the Wakefield Volunteer Fire Department. A mild winter made that activity impossible.
Nevertheless, high spirits prevailed at an event that included lots of activities for kids, such as an outdoor trout pond, indoor minnow races, duck picks, a scavenger hunt, face-painting and balloon animals.
Door prizes and raffles also resulted in a slew of donated prizes being distributed by firefighters and other volunteers.
Some tables featured large piles of tickets, and cheers erupted as winners collected their goods, which included a children’s fire truck, a fire hat, bicycles, an American Girl doll, a sleigh shovel, tools such as drills or knives, and many other items.
Fire Chief Michael Singleton was heading up the raffle table with the help of firefighters Michael Yon and Nathan Ozzello.
Hot sandwiches, chips and beverages also flowed from the kitchen, where Toni Haukala was volunteering with other happy faces.
For sale were T-shirts and hats that included insignias of the fire department. Vikki Pikka said it was the first year they had sold merchandise at the annual fundraiser “and it’s been amazing.”
Live music followed in the evening.
Because of the COVID-19 pandemic, last year’s fishing contest had been the first held in Wakefield since 2019. Past contests have pulled in as much as $14,000, which the department then is able to use to upgrade equipment or address other needs.
The event typically includes a $25 prize for first registered fish and $50 for the smallest fish, along with other prizes.
“We estimated between 300-500 people attended,” reported Singleton in a Tuesday email. “Just wanted to thank all the people and businesses who donated to support our fundraiser. And also the people who volunteered the day of the event. With the community’s support, this makes the event a huge success.”
