Todays News

Annual Mousehole Days returns Aug. 7-9

MELBOURNE -- Summer is the season of community celebrations and Melbourne is no exception. Mousehole Days returns August 7-9 with live music, food, kids' activities, its famous Monkey Shine Parade, and more.

This year's theme is "Mardi Gras with the Mice." Dee Pickard, who serves on the Mousehole Days planning committee, said its members knew many area towns were going with the 250th birthday of the United States as their theme, and Melbourne wanted to go in a different direction.

"We wanted to throw our own party and it snowballed from there. We added the mice," she said.

Friday, Aug. 7

The celebration begins with the firemen pork burgers from 5:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. at the fire station. Freewill offering.

Water Rocks! and Iowa Learning Farms is bringing its Conservation Trailer to town 5:30 p.m. to 8 p.m. on the corner of Second Street and Main Street. This endeavor offers "visual demonstrations and discussion to engage adults and youth in learning about Iowa's land and water resources."

Grab a root beer float at MidWestOne Bank, starting at 6 p.m., put on by St. John's.

At 6:30 p.m., the Melbourne Masons will host the Kids' Pedal Pull on Main Street.

"The further they go, the harder it gets. The kids try and see how far they can pedal before they can't anymore," she added.

Miss and Mr. Mousehole will be crowned. The contest is open to youth entering kindergarten through entering third grade, residing in Melbourne and surrounding area. Sign up at the bank at 6:30 p.m. The actual drawing will be done at the fire station closer to 8 p.m.

The slow pitch softball tournament starts at 7 p.m.

"We will have three games on Friday night, and then the rest of the games will be on Saturday. We have 10 teams competing this year, and it will be a double elimination softball tournament style. And all of the proceeds of that tournament will go back to the Melbourne Softball and Baseball Association," she said.

The Monkey Shine Parade will start at 8 p.m. at the fire station. Prizes will be given for: best matching of theme, crowd favorite, and most obnoxious.

"So the local kids decorate their bikes with the Mardi Gras theme, and they ride from the fire station down to the bank and back. We have judges that are along the route that will choose which bike they prefer, and then they receive their prize when they get back to the fire station," Pickard noted.

The Melbourne Pub Bag Tournament starts at 8:30 p.m.

Music at the Rec Center goes 8 p.m. to 11 p.m. with Hawk McIntyre and Jake Doty performing.

There will be a 50/50 raffle drawing during the concert, with the winner announced at 10 p.m. Must be present to win. The other half of the money goes back into Mousehole Days funding.

Saturday, Aug. 8

Saturday starts with a Masons breakfast at the Rec Center, beginning at 7 a.m., freewill offering.

Early risers will enjoy the 5K, which returns this year. Sign up at 7:30 a.m. at the Rec Center, race starts at 8 a.m.

"It's being brought back by one of our locals -- John Schlichte -- and he is very excited and eager," Pickard said.

The softball tournament continues at 8 a.m.

The Melbourne Pub Bloody Mary Bar opens at 9 a.m.

Parade starts at 10:30 a.m. in front of the Rec Center. Participants can sign up on the Facebook page to register or day of the event. It is free. Those participating in the car show are welcome to also be in the parade.

"We'll put (them) at the very end, and then they bring up the end of the parade, and then park their cars along Main Street to start the car show," she noted.

Dunk Tank at the New Horizons United Methodist Church will go 11 a.m. to 4 p.m., sponsored by the Melbourne Car Show. Local celebrities will be dunked. Cost is $2 per ball or $3 for five balls.

Car Show "up town" goes from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. Cost is $15 per vehicle. There will be a 50/50 raffle too. Judging will be by participants, with awards going to top three. Enter cars on the north side of Main Street after the parade ends. For more information email: Melbournecarshow@gmail.com and its Facebook page.

Noon to 1 p.m. will be a foam party in the park. 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. will be the New Horizons Church lunch and air time.

Slip and slide at the library from 2 p.m. to 3 p.m.

The fire department will host a water fight with the kids starting around 3 p.m. on Third Avenue.

Pool opens at 3 p.m. Tweenish Splash Dance is $7 a person and goes from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. Refreshments will be served.

The Street Dance at Melbourne Pub will see Whiskey Bizkit perform. It goes from 8 p.m. to midnight. Fireworks at dusk.

Sunday, Aug. 9

The final day features a church in the park (Meier Memorial Park) at 9:30 a.m., sponsored by New Horizons UMC and St. John's UCC. An offering for Helping Hands will be collected. In case of inclement weather, the service will be moved to the Rec Center.

Food trucks for Mousehole Days will include: Big Acai, King Snowee Shaved Ice, Saddle Up Drink Co., Sugar Box Treats, Clare's Tenderloins, The Eggroll Ladies, Lucky Wife Wine Slushies and The Gyro Spot Iowa.

For more information, contact Pickard at: mhdmelbourne@gmail.com.