Girl wins $1,000 at Woodridge Rotary Back-to-School Duck Dash

Hundreds of rubber ducks were tossed into the lazy river at Cypress Cove Aquatic Center on August 16 in the first annual Back to School Duck Dash of the Woodridge Rotary. Samantha Kent was the big winner, with her duck crossing the finish line in first place. Samantha won $1,000 and was presented with a giant check. The randomly numbered ducks "swam" their way around Cajun Creek with a little help from lifeguards who rescued the ducks from swimming off course; three lucky winners won between $250 and $1,000.

Sponsors from the community included the Woodridge Park District, many local businesses, and individual residents who donated $10 for each duck they adopted. The Illinois American Water sponsor sent their big Duck mascot to greet kids and helped start the race. Woodridge Rotary President Debbie Mascitti was pleased with the turnout, “It’s a wonderful start to what we hope is a great annual tradition.”

On hand to witness the Dash was Page Weaver, known as “Duck Girl” for her collection of 747 ducks. Page’s friends and family used the Dash fundraiser as an opportunity to honor Page by sponsoring ducks in her name. After receiving a free duck for attending the Dash in person, Page declared, “I’ll be back next year!”

Woodridge Rotary Club https://woodridgerotary.org/

We put the FUN in fundraiser! The Rotary Club of Woodridge funds hyper-local scholarships for college, summer camps, and sports participation, along with supporting free tutoring, school supplies, backpack giveaways, mental health initiatives, environmental conservation, homeless prevention programs, and more. We’re people of action, giving back to our community.