The Colfax World Fair is Finally Here!

The Colfax World Fair is coming to Valley Village today, and thousands of carnival-lovers will be gathering for fun, entertainment, and a chance to support their neighborhood school.

This “Old World Fair” is produced exclusively by parent and community volunteers, and features family-friendly games and attractions, two food courts, a huge silent auction with over 500 items, raffles, and musical performances throughout the day.  My Gym hosts Toddler Town, an area exclusively for babies and children under six. They also close off an adjacent street for their Morella Water Park - an entire block filled with water slides, obstacle courses, and the popular water balloon catapulting game Water Wars.

The Colfax World Fair takes place today from noon – 7 p.m. at Colfax Charter Elementary School, 11724 Addison St., Valley Village (one-half mile east of Laurel Canyon Blvd. and four blocks north of Riverside Dr.). Admission and parking are free.

Colfax Charter Elementary School conducted a contest called “The 20-Day Countdown to the Colfax World Fair” in which a particular attraction, game, silent auction item, entertainment performance and food vendor was featured on the Colfax Charter Facebook and Twitter pages, and expanded descriptions were published in North Hollywood/Toluca Lake and Studio City Patch. Anyone who replied, retweeted, or left a comment on Patch was entered into a daily drawing to win a Colfax World Fair t-shirt and ten tickets to the fair. Winners were announced each following day.

The winner for Day Two was Michael Rivera, and the Winner for Day 1 was Nicole Amiel who both commented on Patch.

The Entertainment schedule for this year’s Colfax World Fair is:

12:00 DJ Sounds

12:15 1st Grade Songs

12:30 Orchestra

1:00 Kindergarten & 1st Grade Violins

1:45 Raffle #1

2:00 2nd Grade Vaudeville

2:15 The King’s Rock

2:45 Independence Dance Company

3:00 3rd Grade Songs & YS Drill Team

3:15 Keyboards

3:45 Raffle #2

4:00 4th Grade Songs & E3 Hip Hop

4:15 Colfax Variety Show

4:45 Art in Motion Zumba Dance

5:00 5th Grade Songs & Zumba

5:15 Colfax Glee

5:45 Raffle #3

6:00 Parents Rock

6:45 DJ Jerry Antonelli Brings Us Home

The Toddler Town My Gym Activity Schedule is:

12:00 Free Play

12:30 Body Moving

1:00 Bug Boogie

1:30 Food Frenzy

2:00 Monkey Business

2:30 Under the Sea

3:00 Dance, Dance, Dance

3:30 Fly Like a Bird

4:00 Crazy Counting

4:30 Acting Like Animals

5:00 Drive & Jive

5:30 Tick Tock Time

6:00 Funny Frogs

6:30 Fallin’ All Around

The Silent Auction Closing Schedule is:

5:45 Just for You, Health & Beauty, Sports & Fitness

6:00 Arts & Entertainment, Museums, Wine & Dine, Class Baskets

6:15 Family Recreation, Kids Zone, Classes & Parties

6:30 OMG, Colfax Families, Ticketed Events, Restaurants, Get Aways

Silent Auction Pickup Times are:

Saturday, June 4th 6:30 – 9 p.m. (Silent Auction Tent)

Sunday, June 5th 9 a.m. – 2 p.m. (Silent Auction Tent)

Monday, June 6th 8:00 – 9 a.m. & 2:30 – 3:30 p.m. (Colfax Parent Center)

Tuesday, June 7th 8:00 – 9 a.m. & 1:30 – 2:30 p.m. (Colfax Parent Center)

Wednesday, June 8 8 – 9 a.m. & 2:30 – 3:30 p.m. (Colfax Parent Center)

To arrange for a special pickup, please call Kristen Notarianni at 818-612-2579.

All auction items not redeemed and paid for by Wednesday, June 8 will be sold to the next highest bidder.

The Colfax World Fair is the biggest fundraiser for Colfax Charter Elementary School, who was hit particularly hard in LAUSD budget cuts. The school recently lost its Title 1 funding (money given to schools where a majority of students are eligible for free or reduced lunch) and the enormous sum of $85,000 that is part of the annual budget of all affiliated charter schools. At the last School Site Council Meeting, the 2011-2012 budget revealed a class size of 29 students per classroom for Kindergarten through 3rd grade, no funds for their librarian, and absolutely no budget for necessities like printer ink.

Colfax Charter is well-known for its strong academic curriculum and enrichment in three specific areas: the arts (theatre, visual arts, and music, including keyboards, violins and orchestra); science/green education (vegetable garden, composting, recycling, and our on-campus farm) and technology (computer lab and laptop carts). They are a proudly diverse community, with broad ethnic and socio-economic representation and active parent involvement. Their 2010 API was an impressive 893, they were awarded as a California Distinguished School in 2010, and in 2008 Colfax also won the Music Center Excellence in Arts Education BRAVO Award.