Catching water fowl fever

Paul Clinton

Community leaders putting on a popular fund-raiser are almost ready to

throw their ducks into the soup for the annual Duck-A-Thon.

The event, now in it’s 10th year, has been scheduled for the weekend

of May 18 and 19.

Organizers carefully picked the day, so they would have an incoming

tide, when the miniature rubber ducks are tossed off the Huntington Beach

Pier.

“We don’t like picking them up in Catalina,” said Pat Davis, the

event’s lead organizer. “That’s just too long a swim.”

The fund-raiser benefits the Huntington Beach Community Clinic, a

medical group providing health-care to low-income patients.

Davis has set a goal of $100,000 for the event, which is organized by

a support group for the clinic. The group is two-thirds of the way to

that goal, Davis said.

To raise the funds, the group sells the ducks to individuals and

corporations. In years past, the group has dropped 2,700 ducks in the

water.

This year, fund-raisers added a wrinkle to the event. One volunteer,

Lloyd Skaggs, made mini-surfboards for some of the ducks. Individuals can

buy ducks for as little as $10, or $20 for surfing ducks. Corporate

ducks, which are twice the size of regular ducks go for $100, or $125

with a surfboard.

At the City Council meeting on Monday, two organizers handed Mayor

Debbie Cook her official “Mayor’s Duck” for the event and invited her to

decorate it in her own individual way.

As part of the event, the ducks float back to the shoreline in a race.

Each duck is affixed with a number.

“We hope you win this year,” said Don MacAllister, a former mayor and

event organizer.

“I just hope it floats,” Cook joked to the assembled crowd.

Two large tractors are used to dump the load of rubber ducks, which is

expected to exceed 3,000 rubber fowl this year.

Three races have been planned for this year’s event. The “Mayors Race”

kicks off the festivities at 1:30 p.m. Saturday. In that race, Cook and

mayors from several surrounding cities race their ducks.

At 3 p.m. on May 18, ducks purchased by the public set off toward the

shoreline. The corporate race is set for 2:30 p.m. Sunday.

The event is also scheduled to have live entertainment, a “Duck

Festival” with booths of goods and other fun activities.

* PAUL CLINTON is a reporter with Times Community News. He covers City

Hall and education. He may be reached at (714) 965-7173 or by e-mail ato7 paul.clinton@latimes.comf7 .