Hayden Days starts Friday
<p>Rachquel Foster kicks a beach ball Wednesday dressed as Cecil the Cardinal during Cecil's Summer Splash, a beach party held for North Idaho College students who are connected to the school mascot's Facebook page. Music, food and various beach activities were the focus of the event held on Yap-Keehn-Um beach near the college.</p>
HAYDEN - The 2010 Hayden Days celebration is Friday and Saturday at Hayden City Park, next to Hayden City Hall.
This year's Hayden Days Parade will start at 10 a.m. Saturday. The parade route begins at Hayden Avenue and proceeds south along Government Way to Honeysuckle Avenue, ending in the vicinity of the city baseball field on Honeysuckle.
Kandi Johnson, branch manager of Inland Northwest Bank and Hayden Chamber of Commerce board member, is the grand marshal. It's part of her role as citizen of the year, chosen by the Rotary Club of Hayden Lake.
"I have requested a convertible - a red one," Johnson said. "I have never ridden in one before."
Johnson, 48, of Dalton Gardens, has been the branch manager of the Inland Northwest Bank on Prairie Avenue for nearly two years.
"We've grown the branch substantially, adding more customers," she said.
But the branch does more than increase deposits and work to add new accounts.
"We try to keep something going on every other month in the community," Johnson said.
The branch raises money for the Humane Society, collects school supplies for youngsters, and volunteers to help the elderly, among other efforts.
She also is a Coeur d'Alene Chamber of Commerce commodore.
Hayden Days will have live music, featuring local musicians, plus clowns, illusionists, and dance groups.
On Friday, the festival will run from 2-10 p.m., and from 10 a.m. to 10 p.m. Saturday.
Children's activities will include jump houses, camel rides, an obstacle course, a dunk tank, sand art, big wheel drag races and dart throwing. Organizers also scheduled some family competitions.
Hot air balloon rides will be offered, as long as the weather cooperates. The rides are scheduled 6-9 p.m. on Friday and Saturday at City Park.
The festival will have a variety of food vendors, arts, crafts and information booths. The Hayden Senior Gems will host a beer and wine garden and cow-chip bingo.
The Northern Lakes Fire District and Hayden Chamber of Commerce plan to provide a pancake breakfast from 7-9 Saturday at the City Park gazebo.
The Rotary Club will hold a car show on Saturday at the Honeysuckle main ball field. Check-in is 9 a.m., and awards will be announced at 3 p.m.
The live music at the park will go from 6-9 p.m. Friday and Saturday. Subtracting the Negative is scheduled to play on Friday night, and country group the Kelly Hughes Band is scheduled to perform on Saturday night.
Government Way will be closed to through traffic from Honeysuckle north to Dakota Avenue from 9:45 a.m. to noon on Saturday for the parade. Honeysuckle will be closed from Government Way east to Wayne Drive during that time.