Dallas Center Fall Festival is this weekend. Here's what you need to know:

Dallas Center’s annual festival returns Friday and Saturday with a variety of family-friendly fun. 

“The main thing with Fall Festival is its really family and kid-focused,” said Lezlie Ellerman, who helps organize the festival with DC Celebrations. 

The festivities will kick off on Friday night in Mound Park with a DJ, lawn games, Ugly Cake Contest, Toby the Balloon Dude, Sparkle Hula Hoop Dance Party and more. Free hot dogs will be provided by Raccoon Valley Bank, followed by the Ohana Pedal Power Tractor Pull.  

The Scott Amusements Carnival will open at 5 p.m. on Walnut Street. New this year, wristbands will be good from 5-8 p.m. on Friday and 11 a.m. - 2 p.m. or 5-8 p.m. on Saturday.  

Ellerman encourages community members to purchase pre-sale tickets as all proceeds before 4 p.m. on Friday will go directly to DC Celebrations to help off-set the cost of the carnival. Pre-sale tickets can be purchased at Kids Korner, Korner Kone, Raccoon Valley Bank, Sugar Grove Goods, The Baker's Pantry and the library. 

Saturday’s festivities will kick off with the Rotary Pancake Breakfast, 5k, 1k road races and a tot trot.  

The Leonard Moss Memorial Parade will head down Walnut Street at 10 a.m. No registration is required and the parade will start lining up at 9:30 a.m. on Kellogg near the skate park. 

A variety of activities will follow the parade, including a car, truck and motorcycle show, sand volleyball, bags and pickleball tournaments, kids games, an ice cream social and more. 

The quilt show returns this year to the Methodist Church, sponsored by Mashe Modern. Register online to have your quilt included in the show.

Several contests will be held throughout the day, including a pie eating contest sponsored by The Baker’s Pantry, Mr. Legs contest, parent calling and husband calling contests and a lip sync contest. A new contest this year is the Cat Council, which joins the DC Dog Mayor. 

The evening will wrap up with live music by Four Shades of Gray, a free-will donation dinner, pie auction and fireworks.

Ellerman said pies are needed as the auction is one of the biggest fundraisers for DC Celebrations. Proceeds from the auction are split between DC Celebrations and the fire department. Pies can be dropped off Saturday morning at the front entrance of the Methodist Church. 

“We’re looking for a record year. We had a record year last year, so we’re really pumped about raising some good money for that,” Ellerman said.

She encourages area residents to come check out the family-friendly activities on Friday and Saturday in Dallas Center. 

“It’s exciting to see how we’ve grown and changed over the years with keeping the same small-town traditions that kids have grown to love and look forward to,” Ellerman said. 

For more information, including a full schedule of events, registration forms and event flyers, visit the Dallas Center Celebrations website and DC Celebrations, Dallas Center, Iowa Facebook page.