Wrightsville Beach School’s playground was transformed Friday, Sept. 26 into a colorful maze of inflatable castles, slides and obstacle courses for the Wrightsville Beach Back-to-School Carnival.
Excited throngs of students ran from game to game. A few parents attempted to keep up with their children while others stood by and watched, chatting with teachers or fellow parents.
Event chair and PTA member Melissa Ellison said events like these bring together the school’s close-knit community.
“We’re a smaller school than most elementary schools,” Ellison said. “Everybody knows each other. There’s only two or three classes per grade, so the parents become friends and we all do things together.”
PTA President Elizabeth Beacham said the school was founded in September 1954, so they wanted to honor the school’s 60th anniversary. The decision was made to combine the back-to-school picnic with the annual Fall Festival and give it a 1950’s theme.
“This year, it definitely has a different feel,” Beacham said, watching a group of girls dressed in pink poodle skirts running by.
In addition to the inflatable castles, children also enjoyed games of freeze dance, a cakewalk and face painting. In between activities, families snacked on food provided by Rita’s Italian Ice, Little Caesar’s, Trolly Stop Hot Dogs and Moe’s Southwest Grill.
The most highly anticipated station at the carnival, for students at least, was the dunk tank.
Teachers and PTA members gamely stepped up to get dunked. When it was first-grade substitute teacher Liza Dean’s turn, suddenly the line at the dunk tank was filled with students from her class, giggling in anticipation of sending their teacher into the water.
“That water is cold,” remarked Ellison, drying off after being dunked minutes earlier.
The event allowed students, parents and teachers to get to know one another while benefitting the school, as proceeds from the event will help purchase school supplies.
