South Fayette carnival fun for all

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Evelyn Ponchak gives her dad, David, a bite of her macaroni and cheese while her siblings (back) Ella and Ethan enjoy their dinner during carnival days at South Fayette High School. Ponchak’s mother, Jess, said the family enjoys the event, which is a fundraiser for many clubs and organizations in the school district. “The kids get so excited to see their friends and it’s really good for school spirit.”

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Jackson and Savannah Bremner negotiate a maze in an inflatable during the South Fayette High School carnival. Savannah, 7, just started first grade in the school district, and her mother, Beth, said that carnival was a great way for everybody to get together and make new friends.

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Aarush Thakkar tosses a pitch while Vedh Erukula watches his aim during a game at the South Fayette High School carnival.

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John Milius, 3, enjoys his ride down the inflatable slide during South Fayette High School carnival days.

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Asher Smith watches intently as his pig reaches the finish line first and he wins a prize during the South Fayette High School carnival.

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Lyla Davis (back) along with Jameson and Leona The play selections for those passing by to promote the string orchestra at South Fayette High School.

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The South Fayette Lion mascot, Jacob Tierney, poses for photographs with Rebekka Martin, Addisom Andrade, Isla Vidak, Talia Scheib.

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Sanika Kulkarni spins cotton candy with the help of Yaashna Praveenkumar while fellow classmates Mohit Parmar, Rohan Paranjp, Rhea Yadav and Rishi Kakadiya watch.

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Ember Smith takes her ticket from a vendor so she can compete in a game during the South Fayette High School carnival.

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Gemma Belcastro tries her hand at mini golf during South Fayette carnival events.

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Kyla Wilson gets a spider web face tattoo during South Fayette carnival.

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Jack Belcastro takes his best shot during a putting contest at South Fayette High School carnival.

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South Fayette advertises its annual homecoming carnival as a “fun-for-all-ages” activity and Sham Dhonde couldn’t agree more. He brought his daughter, Liliana, and son, Sham Jr., to the stadium on Sept. 18 for the event, which is a key fundraiser for many of the high school’s clubs, organizations and athletic teams.

“Being able to take the kids to a safe place where they can enjoy themselves is wonderful,” he said. “The events aren’t expensive and pricey, and the kids really get to enjoy themselves and have fun.”

Sham Jr. said, “I love it. There’s so many games to play and you get prizes,” he added.

South Fayette high school boys’ basketball coach David Mislan laughed because he has witnessed the sheer pleasure children get from winning a lollipop. Prizes were a little more elaborate at the hoop booth manned by Mislan’s players, including Ryan Gupta, Connor Boland and Logan Brezler.

“It’s fun seeing the faces of the kids and how happy they are. They love carnival,” Mislan said. “The turnout from the community is fantastic, and it’s always a good sign when you see everyone having fun.

“OK, sure, it is a fundraiser for each of the school’s groups but the community interaction is also a bonus. Anytime the little kids can get with the big kids, they always have a good time and it’s a big positive.”

Sponsored annually by the South Fayette High School Student Government, the carnival is a community-building and fundraising activity in celebration of Homecoming. In addition to high school clubs and organizations, booster groups also participated in the event. The event also included various booths and food trucks, an obstacle course, bounce house, giant slide, dunk tank, and face painting. The Little Green Machine Marching Band performed and the school mascot made a public appearance.

Jacob Tierney embraces his role as the Lion. Middle school associate vice principal Dr. Kevin Maurer recruited Tierney for the role and for the past two years, Cooper Bruce has served as his mentor.

“Dr. Maurer asked me if I wanted to be the Lion and, of course, I took it. I’m honestly very honored to be the mascot.

“I enjoy being the masked guy. I love taking pictures with other people,” he said.

Lindsay Cole, a cheerleader who helped man the dunk tank on a warm late-summer night, shared Tierney’s enthusiasm for the event as did Lyla Davis, who did double duty face painting as well as promoting the string orchestra by playing the violin for those passing by the music booth.

“I love carnival,” said Cole. “It’s a good way to bring the community together and a good way to fundraise.”

Carnival exposes young students to what awaits them in high school.

Lauren Smith was one of the many parents bringing young children to the festival. She noted her children, Asher and Ember, were having a great time as they competed in one of the races.

“This is a nice way for the kids in the community to come together and to find out what kind of clubs and activities there will be when they get bigger,” Smith said.

Others, such as Julie Miluis and Aarush Thakkar, appreciated the “uniqueness” of the event. Miluis attended carnival with his husband, John, and their two children, Eleanor, 5, and James, 3.

“We didn’t have anything like this where I was growing up,” said Miluis, an Akron, Ohio native. “I think it’s great that everyone gets together for things like this here.”