FORT SILL, Okla. (May 7, 2015) -- More than 2,000 people enjoyed warm weather and cool breezes at the second annual Spring Carnival, May 2 at Lake Elmer Thomas Recreation Area (LETRA).
'"We have (the carnival) to get the public introduced to the park," said Mark Houseman, LETRA manager. "In three weeks we open for the summer and this reintroduces them to what we have to offer."
Maj. Miles Walz, 75th Field Artillery Brigade, attended both the first carnival and Saturday's carnival with his children and said they enjoy coming to LETRA for events such as this.
"This is something to do just for fun," said Walz while watching his 9-year-old daughter, Grace, zero in on a paintball target. "We try to do things like this when we can. It's something different and it's family friendly."
The event sprawled across the recreation area allowing attendees to see multiple parts of LETRA. Some families found shade under trees while children explored playgrounds. Others waited in line to experience the new attractions.
This year's event added food vendors, pony rides, an inflatable obstacle course, a train ride, go-karts and a 70-foot zip line. While some of the attractions were free, such as the paddleboats, mini golf and the rock wall, others required tickets which were $1 each and available for purchase at LETRA. Houseman said the money raised from the event goes toward the overall cost of maintaining LETRA.
"We pay back the vendors who come out and then the rest of the money helps with maintenance costs," said Houseman. "If we can use some of the costs for next year's event then we'd be able to bring back some of these new things like the zip line and the pony rides. It can get better and better."
Social Sharing