One of Schuylkill County's biggest block parties will kick off Monday in Tower City.
The 67th Tower-Porter Old Home Week will be held from Monday to June 8 on the American Legion Midway Grounds. The carnival will be open from 6 to 11 p.m. Monday through Friday, 11 a.m. to 11:30 p.m. Saturday and noon to 6 p.m. Sunday.
Peter A. Hoffman, treasurer of the Tower-Porter Improvement Organization, which organizes the event, said the carnival expanded into Sunday this year. After rainy weather affected last year's carnival, the committee decided to add Sunday as a way to generate more funds.
Hoffman said the proceeds from the carnival are distributed among 10 and 12 groups, with the largest recipient typically being the local swimming pool.
The highlight of the carnival is "Super Saturday," which features the Spirit Parade. According to the event's website, www.tpoldhomeweek.org, the parade will step off at 11 a.m. It will feature members of the community, such as service groups, businesses and organizations. The day will conclude with a fireworks extravaganza at 10:45 p.m. Hoffman said the nightcap draws a "tremendous" amount of people to the Midway.
The parade returned a couple years ago after the carnival committee felt the event needed to be revamped. Hoffman said up until 2011, the carnival was on a dying trend. Since then, the committee's goal has been to return the carnival to its heyday of the 1960s and '70s.
"People just love the way that we brought it back to the way it used to be," Hoffman said.
The effort included bringing in more rides to fill the Midway. This year, at least 15 rides are scheduled to appear at the carnival. They include the dump truck bounce house, The Scrambler, The Zipper and a Ferris wheel. According to the website, ride wristbands will be available for $15 from Tuesday to Saturday.
Ride tickets will also be available during operation times. The sessions will be held from 6 to 11 p.m. Tuesday through Friday and 6 to 11:30 p.m. Saturday. Special discount ride wristbands will be available for $10 from 1 to 5 p.m. Saturday and 1 to 6 p.m. Sunday. Rides will not be running on opening night due to setup.
The rides will be provided by Nonweiler Amusements Midway Inc., Lehighton, who will also bring challenging games. Local community organizations will also be running game stands, such as a dime pitch, money wheel and dice roll.
According to the event website, nightly entertainment is planned throughout the week. The entertainment tent, which seats 72, will be home to musical acts every night. The performers scheduled to appear are:
Monday - Local variety band Shannon from 7 to 10 p.m.
Tuesday - Country band Laredo from 7 to 10 p.m.
Wednesday - Classic rock band Blowin' Smoke from 7 to 10 p.m.
Thursday - Oldies rock 'n' roll band Rockville Revue from 7 to 10 p.m.
Friday - Elvis show, Brad Crum and His Legend Band from 7:30 to 10:30 p.m.
Saturday - Party band Deuce from 6:30 to 10:30 p.m.
Sunday - Christian choral group Men in Harmony from 2 to 5 p.m.
In addition to rides and games, food vendors will be set up around the Midway. Some of the stands will be manned by local organizations, such as the Porter-Tower Little League selling chicken wings and the Porter-Tower Recreation Commission selling fried Oreos, tacos salads, birch beer and birch beer floats.
This year, money raffle drawings will be moved to 5 p.m. Sunday. Hoffman said there will be 10 winners of $500.
For more information about the carnival, visit the event's website or Facebook page.