Buffalo Rotary is holding the "quazyiest" race ever: its fourth annual Duck Derby on Sunday, Aug. 26, at Canalside Buffalo. Free, family-friendly feathered festivities commence at 11:30 a.m., while race time is 2 p.m.
Available for a $5 donation (or six ducks for $25), the highly trained rubber ducks will launch from The Blue Line Bridge at Canalside, located next to Explore & More's new site overlooking the skating rink. Family activities will be presented by the Buffalo & Erie County Public Library, Explore and More Children's Museum and Young Audiences of Western New York starting at 11:30 a.m. There will also be a "big-ticket" basket, valued at over $500, raffled for $10 per ticket.
Ducks can be adopted in advance of the Duck Derby at
www.buffaloduckderby.com or by visiting any City of Buffalo branch of the Buffalo & Erie County Public Libraries. Ducks will also be available on race day. Those who adopt ducks will be eligible for three prizes: $250 for first place; $125 for second place and $75 for third place (one need not be present to win).
All kinds of family activities will take place starting at 11:30 a.m. and leading up to the race. The library will host summer reading, "Libraries Rock"-themed crafts and storytelling. The "Library on Wheels" Bookmobile will also be at the event. Explore & More will be building and decorating sailboats with visitors of all ages. Take your boat home and test its ability to float for a fun water time experiment! Benjamin Berry from Young Audiences will perform from 12:30 to 1:30 p.m. and there will be a hula-hoop dance workshop.
Duck Derby proceeds will benefit the Buffalo Rotary Foundation to support Rotary Reads - Kids Clubs, to be located in the eight City of Buffalo public library branches. These spaces will encourage reading, discovery and curiosity in children, supplementing the school experience and promoting life-long learning. The Crane Branch Library, Dudley Branch, East Clinton Branch, East Delavan Branch, Frank E. Merriweather Jr. Branch, Niagara Branch, North Park Branch and the Riverside Branch Library will all have Rotary Reads - Kids Clubs next year. Buffalo Rotary has just announced a grant of $116,000 to create the Kids Clubs.
The Rotary Club of Buffalo is made up of dedicated neighbors, community and business leaders committed to making Western New York a better place to live. Since 1989, the club has awarded grants totaling more than $1.9 million to Western New York nonprofit organizations, including Ronald McDonald House, Young Audiences, PATH, Olmsted Center for Sight, Food Bank of WNY and Locust Street Arts Center.
