Printed in the July 11 Sauk Centre Herald, page 7A
The annual three-day Bonanza Valley Days celebration is this weekend in Brooten with the theme 'Renaissance Days'. It all begins on Friday with city-wide garage sales starting at 7 a.m. along with an elementary baseball tournament for third through sixth grade players at the town's three ball diamonds.
A community favorite, the Brooten Fireman's chicken BBQ, starts at 5 p.m. and lasts until 8 p.m. in the city park. The Brooten Community Band will perform at the same time.
A couple's golf tournament starts at 6 p.m. on Friday at Prairie View Community Golf Course. Musical entertainment is also on deck at the newly-remodeled Brooten Pavilion with the Steffl Sisters from the Sunburg area performing live music from 7 p.m. to 11 p.m.
The musical group The Realtors, a group made up of some of the first Belgrade-Brooten-Elrosa graduates in the early 1990s, performs at Classic Company Dinner Theater at 7 p.m. Tickets are available by calling 320-346-2323.
A 24-team men's softball tournament also starts on Friday at 7 p.m., and the evening concludes with a free street dance on main street with music by Dee Jay Sounds.
A full slate of activities starts at 7 a.m. on Saturday with the second day of city-wide garage sales.
Beginning at 8 a.m. on Saturday are the National Guard wall climb and jungle gym on main street, a car and tractor show (until 1 p.m.) south of the city park and the second day of the men's softball tournament.
The annual Walk/Run is at 8:30 a.m., and sand volleyball and a three-on-three basketball tournament both start at 9 a.m. at the city park.
Stearns County Dairy princesses serve free milk and cookies at the city park from 10 a.m. to 11 a.m.
The B-B-E Jaguars wrestling club dunking booth runs from 10:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. on main street, and the Miss Brooten royalty car wash is at the Bonanza Valley State Bank parking lot from 10:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m.
Bingo at the Ka-De Shack starts at 1 p.m., and the second annual Gary Fauskee Memorial Scholarship fund softball tournament at Quisberg Park runs from 1 p.m. to 4 p.m.
Pony Rides at the city park start at 1 p.m., and a petting zoo is also at the city park lasting from 1:30 p.m . to 3:30 p.m.
The annual Firemen's Water Fight between area town fire departments is on south main street at 2 p.m. The kid's tractor pull on north main street starts at 4 p.m.
The farewell appearance for the 2012 Miss Brooten Royalty is from 7:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. on main street, and following that is a second free street dance with music by Kentucky Thunder.
Always a favorite of people across the area is the Precocious Pyrotechnics fireworks show at dusk fired off from the Prairie View Community Golf Course.
Sunday activities start off with a Dad's Belgian Waffle Breakfast at the city park from 8 a.m. to noon, hosted by the B-B-E Area Boy Scout Troop 66.
The Grand Parade starts at 1:30 p.m. on the north end of main street, and parade-watchers are invited to an ice cream social at the city park.
At 3:30 p.m., The Realtors will perform a 20th anniversary concert at Classic Company Dinner Theater, and the day wraps up with a church service at the city park hosted by Trinity Lutheran and West Lake Johanna Lutheran Churches Pastor Bryant Kaden.