Click here to view the winners and additional entries of the "Show Off Your Grandkids" photo contest:
The Festus Senior Expo set for Wednesday, March 22, will offer a wide variety of activities to keep you busy – vendors, prizes, games, guest speakers and live music.
One lucky senior will win a grand prize package for two from the St. Louis Symphony Orchestra that includes free tickets, drink vouchers, dessert vouchers, valet parking and a reusable “swag bag” filled with various SLSO merchandise.
A second random drawing will be held for the first of five prizes offered by the St. Louis Art Museum, one at each Leader Senior Expo held this year. Each of those prize packages includes a custom museum bag, a one-year museum membership, books, greeting cards and other materials.
Even if your name isn’t called for either of those prizes, you may not walk away empty-handed; many attendance prizes, vendor prizes and giveaways will be held during the expo, which is sponsored by Leader Publications.
The expo will be held from 8 a.m. to noon at the Sacred Heart Parish Annex Building in Crystal City. Admission is free.
Expo lineup
■ Free coffee and doughnuts will be available beginning when the doors open at 8 a.m. and offered while the supply lasts.
■ Seniors may register at the Leader booth for the St. Louis Symphony grand prize package as well as the special St. Louis Art Museum prize. Only those age 50 or older are eligible to win the prize, although the guests the winner takes to the concert may be any age. One entry per person, please. The winner will be selected at random from all eligible entries.
■ Vendors will be on hand throughout the morning with a wide variety of goods and services of interest to seniors. Smart expogoers will avoid writer’s cramp by bringing pre-printed address labels for entering drawings, filling out forms or requesting information.
■ At 8:30 a.m., Jennifer Hines from Miracle Ear will speak on home safety and hearing loss, and why a yearly hearing exam is needed.
■ At 9 a.m., the first of two free bingo sessions will be held, featuring prizes, including restaurant coupons and gift certificates.
■ At 9:30 a.m., Festus Fire Protection District Capt. Jeff Brown and Crystal City Police Sgt. Kyle Boyer will present a “Safety for Seniors” seminar.
■ At 10 a.m., a second session of free bingo will be played. Caller is Coldwell Banker Gundaker real estate agent Karen LaPlant.
■ At 10:30 a.m., Festus Public Library director Elizabeth Steffen will speak about programs and services provided by the library.
■ Prize winners will be announced at 11 a.m. in the Annex building.
■ At about 11:15 a.m., the official Leader Senior Expo Band, J.B. Louis and The Legends, will bring its popular blend of country and classic rock to the stage. The band will perform in the Immanuel Lutheran Family Life Center.
■ Noon. Expo closes.
Show Off Your Grandkids
It would seem Jefferson County and Eureka readers 50 and older are proud of their grandchildren. The annual “Show Off Your Grandkids” photo contest sponsored by Grand Times drew more than 300 entries.
First-place winner was Robin Augustin of Imperial, who will receive $100 for a photo of grandson Charlie during a family outing to nearby Mastodon State Historic Site.
Second-place winner was Theresa Adams of Festus, who gets $75 for her photo of her great-granddaughter, Sophia Endress, playing with bubbles.
Rita Askins of Arnold took third place and $50 with a snapshot of her young grandsons with a frog.
The winning photos in the contest and as many others as space permits may be found on Pages 4B-19B of the March 16 Leader. View the remaining photos here on the Leader website.
For more information about the event, call the Leader at 636-931-7560.