St. Paul Parish Homecoming Was a Sizzling Time Saturday

In spite of sizzling heat, the annual Homecoming attracted a lively crowd Saturday to the church grounds in Fenton.

Fairgoers could enter a washers tournament, play a colorful assortment of carnival games of chance and had several "spinny rides" to choose from, including the Vortex, which spins and tilts, the Scrambler, the Tornado and the Tasmanian Devil, where children sit in chairs suspended by chains while twirling in a circle.

"This ride is certainly worth the three tickets," said Alissa Reeves of Fenton, watching her six-year-old daughter Ariana wave while enjoying the Tasmanian Devil. "She loves this kind of stuff."

Reeves, who has just recently moved to the area, discovered the carnival accidentally.

"We were just passing by and said, 'Oh, there's the carnival.' And this is a good one."

John Matthews, a member of St. Paul Catholic Church, is a veteran of the Homecoming carnival. While watching his children Maya, 4, Price, 8, and Luke, 4, prepare to tackle The Scrambler (Maya changed her mind and got off before the ride began), Matthews shared sage advice, learned the hard way by a friend of his.

"Don't stand too close underneath The Vortex," he said, smiling.

What did he mean? Let's just say that throw "up" is the wrong term, because gravity takes over when a child has had too much to eat before the ride.

Dan Watkins has been coming to the Homecoming carnival for 15 to 16 years -- first with his wife, then also with the family. His son Jonah was going for some sort of carnival marathon, going from the Frog Jump, which raises passengers before suddenly dropping them a couple of feet, to The Tornado, the Vortex, the Tasmanian Devil and even the carnival stalwart, the Ferris Wheel.

The Watkins family had a plan to deal with the heat.

"We're drinking lots of water, and we're going inside to cool off," Watkins said.