Oklee Market Day enjoyed perfect weather & lots of fun

This year, Oklee’s Market Day was the most perfect day ever. It was sunny and not too humid and a perfect day to explore the events held in Oklee.
The Paul’s 5K Walk/Run was held in the morning with 60 participants. There were prizes given for Males & Females in three different age groups. The winners were: Female: Under 18: Jackie Lynn-25:31; Age 19 – 40: Laura Swenson-31:39; Age 41 & over: Carmen Fore-27:38. Male: Under 18: Aaryk Neubert 23:27; Age 19-40: John Mickelson-24:13; and Age 41 & over: Don Hagen-22:53.
The vendors were busy setting up in the morning and all of the vendors were in the Oklee Community Hall except for a couple which were set up outside. Some local favorites were there and there were a few new vendors.
The Quilt Show was held in the small gymnasium since the large gymnasium was still under construction. There were 31 beautiful quilts, 18 small quilts and projects and four Heritage quilts. Visitors were asked to vote and it is hard to choose a People’s award winner. There were two categories this year: The winner of the full sized quilt was: Sandy Hagen (SteadyBetty Ironing Board) and the winner of the small quilt or project was: MaryBeth Hruby (Pillow from "The Shed").
Quilt Show winners of Oklee Quilting Supply Gift Certificates were: Large Quilts: 1st place $75: MaryBeth Hruby; 2nd Place $50: Deb Kaupang; and 3rd Place $25: Grace Dessellier. For small quilts and projects: 1st Place $20: Susy Dower; 2nd Place $15: Shirley Dessellier; and 3rd Place $10: Florence Tvedt. The Heritage Quilt Winner was Shirley Dessellier received dish cloths & homemade soaps for the prize.
The Car Show was set up farther down the street this year with shaded areas which makes it so much nicer for the owners of the classic cars. Many folks were busy walking around and talking to the owners about their beautiful cars. And Wild Wes once again was the music man for the car show.
The Tractor Show didn’t have a lot tractors sitting on Main Street, but that was because the tractors were busy all day long. In the morning, at 10:00 a.m. the Plowing Demonstration was held west of town, behind the football field and there were many tractor enthusiasts plowing with a wide variety of pre-1960 tractors and plows. George Olson, one of the Oklee locals had his 1927 McCormick-Deering out plowing and it is a very interesting tractor to watch as is goes down the field with its metal spiked wheels.
Later in the day at 2:00 p.m., the tractors moved to the north side of town for a tractor pulling contest. The pulling company was Northern Pullers and the cost of $10.00 per hook. There were many pullers and the results posted on their website: www.northernpullers.com.
The Red Lake County Fair board had their dunking tank set up and a basketball throwing game. The participants in the dunking tank got to cool off a number of times, and it is surprising who has a good aim. The Fair Board also auctioned off five of the wood carvings created by Klondike Carvers while at the Fair. This was a very successful fundraiser and the items were all auctioned off.
Unfortunately, the Men’s Softball didn’t pan out. There originally was three teams lined up, but at the last minute, two pulled out and it is hard to have a tournament with only one team. Maybe we will try that one more time next year. It could have been a fun time for softball enthusiasts.
Another of the new events was the Sidewalk Chalk Art contest and there were 19 contestants. There were many different styles and the winner will be announced in next week paper.
The Back Seat Driver contest was held for the second year and there were quite a few trying to win the $25.00 prize. After some tough completion, the winners were Marissa Thomas and Carlee Whalen.
And there was plenty of food available for everyone with the Zion Lutheran Church serving burgers, pie & ice cream and the American Legion serving brats, hotdogs, cookies & chips. Three other local business also had food and beverages, TJ’s Tavern, Cenex and the Oklee Café.
After the Market Day portion of the day was over, there was great entertainment at TJ’s with Erho performing once again in Oklee. They played at the Red Lake County Fair and are a all around fun band to listen and dance to.
So overall, the Oklee Market Day was a very successful venture once again and may the weather bless us next year when Oklee Market Day is here again.
And last of all – Thank you to all the visitors – vendors – sponsors – volunteers – etc. for making this a great day.