Clarke School Country Fair and Cow Plop

Usually on a Sunday in May, Abbott Park is filled with baseball and softball teams honing their hitting and throwing skills. On Sunday, May 15 from 12:00 p.m. - 3:00 p.m. there will still be plenty of activity going on, but with more of a country flair.

The Clarke Elementary School PTO will be hosting their 23rd annual Country Fair and Cow Plop complete with tons of activities for children and their families including inflatables, games, a petting zoo, pony rides, a magician, a balloon artist, face painting, temporary tattoos, food, music, raffle baskets -and a chance to win $1,000!

It's called a Cow Plop, which may seem a little gross, but the kids love it. "On the day of the fair, a grid is drawn on the field, after randomly assigning each raffle ticket a numbered square", said planning committee member Peg Martin-Epstein. "We'll have the cow around all day for the kids to visit and ask questions of the wrangler, and then during the day the cow will do her business on one of the squares." Tickets are only $15 and are typically sold prior to the fair but will be available for purchase on the day of the fair as well.

“In keeping with the country theme, we’ll have a petting zoo with bunnies, ducks, chickens, mini lop and a goat”, said Evangelia Hatzis, “and we’ll also have the same magician as last year, who not only creates great balloon animals but also has a pig as part of his act.”

Run and organized by the parents, with plenty of support from the teachers and staff at Clarke Elementary School, the primary goal of this event is to raise funds with all proceeds going back to the school in the form of cultural arts programs, after school enrichment classes, and library and classroom support.But over the years it's morphed into more than just a fundraiser, it's a real community event.

"Swampscott is such a great community. We are so fortunate to have support from the DPW, Recreation Department, and Swampscott Little League to let us take the park over for the day. We’re also grateful to the Lynch/Van Otterloo YMCA who will be organizing many fun free field games," said committee member Allison Duffy.

There will be over 20 different raffle baskets. "The response from the Clarke parents and local businesses has been overwhelming," said committee member Stephanie Quinn. "The raffle baskets include some amazing items with donations from All About Dance, The Blue Ox, The Warwick, and the YMCA. We're also offering those who can't attend a chance to view and pre-purchase raffle tickets online on our website.

”Be sure to come hungry. “We’ll have pizza from Tony Lena’s, hot dogs, popcorn, cotton candy and plenty of drinks,” said committee member Katie Paster. “We’ll also have popsicles, and thanks to a generous donation from Hood there will be ice cream,” said committee member Rebecca Brownson.

“It’s just a fun day for the kids and parents,” said committee member Isabel Key-Park. "We’ve been coming long before our kids attended Clarke School, and many of our friends from outside of town join us for the day as well."

To learn more, pre-purchasing Cow Plop tickets or raffle tickets, please email cowplop@clarke-pto.org or visit our Facebook page.