Rose fest supports Roselle Lions Club donations

The Roselle Lions Club banks on community members like Donna Bartolv coming to its early summer carnival, held at the annual Rose Festival.

And year after year, they come through.

“It’s a tradition that we come out here every year,” said Bartolv, as she toted her 2-year-old niece, Addison Carlstrom, around the carnival grounds.

Bartolv said she appreciates the Lions Club’s donations to community groups, such as the Roselle Park District and Lake Park High School. And because the Rose Festival carnival is the club’s main fundraiser, member John Barsanti said the money it brings is key to those donations.

The club focuses its fundraising efforts on assisting people with visual or hearing impairments, but rarely turns down any Roselle group in need, Barsanti said. Hearing aids for two residents and a few pairs of glasses for an elementary school are among the Lions’ recent donations.

“Without this festival, I don’t think we could do a whole lot for the community,” Barsanti said. “Luckily the community has, in the past, supported us by coming to the carnival.”

The carnival wasn’t packed on the hot and sunny Saturday afternoon, but Barsanti said he expected the crowd to grow as a free evening concert by Howard and the White Boys approached.

The bingo tent, beer garden and bags tournament areas were busier midafternoon than the carnival.

This is the second year the festival has offered a bags tournament with cash prizes, Barsanti said. Last year, rain forced organizers to move the tournament under a tent. But this year, the games were held out in the sun.

“Luckily, it’s a nice enough day we can do it out here,” Barsanti said.

As Jeri Tyburski’s boyfriend competed with a buddy in the bags tournament, she sprayed bag tossers, volunteers and even a police officer patrolling the event with mist from a small squirting fan.

“I knew I was going to be out here and it’s hot,” Tyburski said.

The carnival continues from noon to 10 p.m. Sunday and the Rose Parade steps off at 2 p.m. from the corner of Roselle Road and Devon Avenue, giving the Roselle community one more opportunity to get in on the 52nd annual Rose Festival activities.

“That’s why we come out,” Bartolv said.