Mardi Gras breaks attendance records

Honored for what they do to benefit the Bootheel Youth Museum, Flo Bennett and Cecil Weeks, Jr., were crowned this year's Mardi Gras King and Queen during Saturday night's gala. Watch for additional photos on this web site.
(Staff photo/Lorraine Heiser)

According to Provance, ticket sales started earlier this year only because requests for the $50-per-person tickets began even before Christmas.

"They were wanting them for Christmas gifts," explained Provance. Luckily, organizer that she is, the tickets were already printed.

"Our goal is always 500 tickets," added Provance. "We maxed out this year with 555 tickets sold."

The original goal was exceeded weeks ago and, again, as happened last year, some areas of the vast party room (the museum's warehouse in its everyday life), had to be expanded to accommodate more tables. Again, the trade-off involved shorter buffet tables and a more condensed silent auction display area. However, with shorter tables, they could be set up in separate areas, thus avoiding congestion at any one site.

That's just one of the changes that have been made in recent years.

"We work on refining how we do things every year," said Provance, who has the preparations for the big evening down to a science.

This year, more decorations were added to the already oppulent decor. Twinkling lights massed behind thin black curtains hide bare walls and drab ceilings. Everywhere there are strategically placed columns, fountains, statues and masks reminiscent of the authentic New Orleans party after which this one is designed.

Malden native Jonce Chidister served as emcee for the evening. As Dunklin County's assistant prosecuting attorney, he was just one of scores of recognizable government officials, and business and community leaders who came out in support of the Museum. As emcee, one of Chidister's duties was to announce the second annual Mardi Gras King and Queen. For their consistently magnanimous financial and personal support of the Bootheel Youth Museum, Flo Bennett and Cecil Weeks, Jr., were crowned the BYM's 2010 Mardi Gras King and Queen. The announcement was met with obvious approval, judging by loud applause from the audience.

It's hard to say what draws people to Mardi Gras. Mostly likely, it's a lot of the same things that draw crowds to New Orleans -- good food, good fun, good music, and a lively mix of folks prepared to have a good time. If there's anything one notices, looking around the crowd, is everyone is having a very good time. It's the perfect atmosphere in which to mix and mingle. As one guest said, "There aren't very many places where you can socialize with a lot of people anymore. You have your family reunions and church groups, but this is different."

While Malden has plenty of good places to eat, enjoying a plateful of seafood fresh from the Gulf is a rarity. That's yet another reason folks return to Mardi Gras year after yeaer -- the Cajun-style feast prepared by BRS Seafood of LaPlace, La. Larry Gendron, a spokesman for the group of six friends, said they left LaPlace Friday morning, arriving in Malden later that day. They brought with them 10 gallons of oysters, 20 pounds of crawfish tails, 150 pounds each of catfish, shrimp for deep frying and peel-n-eat shrimp, 50 pounds each of boiled sausage and boiled crawfish, 100 ears of corn, 50 pounds of potatoes, four cases of hush puppies, four gallons each of tartar sauce and cocktail sauce and six gallons of catsup. That's a whole lot of cooking and a whole lot of good eating. The crew was hard at it by 4:45 a.m. Saturday, said Gendron, and kept the deep fryers going well after the party started at 6:00 p.m.

BRS has supplied the food almost from the first Mardi Gras held at the Malden Community Center seven years ago.

And what would Mardi Gras be without music? For the second year, GumboHead, a zydeco band out of St. Louis, provided the evening's entertainment. Brought back by popular demand, the group had said last year that they hoped they could return. Their mix of Cajun-style and popular music fit in perfectly with the mood set for the evening.

Yet another draw are the bargains to be had in the live and silent auctions. Many bidders leave with their wallets a bit lighter but happy smiles knowing they've helped support the Museum, while having a tangible item to show for their support. Twenty-two high ticket items, such as a 50-inch plasma TV, an Old Waverly golf package, a handcrafted Honduran bowl, a hunting trip, a bowl handcrafted from the old Malden High School gym floor, a diamond necklace, a signed basketball by TRCC Coach Gene Bess and several other items -- all donated.

The list of silent auction items was even more extensive, including over 80 articles, including a wide array of gift certificates, toys, tools, gift baskets and memorabilia. Adding to the fund-raising aspect, a raffle also was held. On the line was a $100 gift certificate from J.R.'s Shoes, two tickets to a St. Louis Cardinals game plus one night at Drury Inn, and the top prize, an HP laptop computer.

And, of course, the real reason to attend would be the Museum itself that benefits from the proceeds. Final figures aren't yet available, but Executive Director Patsy Reublin and Gallery Supervisor Denton Kooyman, expressed their pleasure with the results.

The success of Mardi Gras also is dependent, in large part, on its sponsors. This year's corporate sponsors, who donated $500 or more, were Philip and Patsy Shelton, Quality Center of Malden, BPS Telephone, BPS Networks, 1st Community Bank of Malden, Hester Jewelry, and Claudine and Guy Pinckley. There were a record number of table sponsors ($200) -- 44 altogether.

As of press time, the final ticket count (number who actually attended) and proceeds had not yet been tallied. However, Kooyman said comments he heard since Saturday night described the evening as "The best one yet!"