Ordinary pieces of paper will take flight in a display of aeronautical prowess as the fourth annual Little Rock Paper Airplane Championship returns to the Clinton School of Public Service.
"It's what it sounds like," says organizer Elizabeth Fortune. "It's all about making paper airplanes. It's not a serious event. It's all in fun."
Little Rock Paper Airplane Championship
10 a.m. Saturday, Clinton School of Public Service, 1200 President Clinton Ave., Little Rock
Registration: $20 per family by Friday; $25 at the event
The event is a fundraiser for the Lymphomaniac Society, a nonprofit that provides weekend getaways for cancer survivors and their caregivers. It's not a typical fundraiser and Fortune says the idea sprang from a joke and a bit of procrastination.
While cleaning the house and gathering paper for the recycling bin, Fortune's husband started making paper airplanes and throwing them around the house instead.
She says "We started joking, 'This would be so great if we had a fundraiser where you throw paper airplanes.'"
When they joked about it to friends, the friends responded that their own children loved making paper airplanes, and the Fortunes decided it might be a real fundraiser idea after all.
"It's something different to help us stand out," she says.
For the event, participants are put into four age divisions, from ages 6 and under all the way through adulthood. They then compete for awards for farthest distance and longest hang-time.
People who don't have a lot of paper airplane-making know-how don't need to worry. The whole event starts with a little lesson from a master.
John Collins, also known as "The Paper Airplane Guy," who has written books and holds a world record in the paper airplane field will give a pre-competition talk and demonstration.
"He shows you how to make different styles and talks about ways to make it fly farther or stay in the air longer," Fortune explains. "That's about 30 minutes. John is really incredible what he can do with a piece of paper."
Fortune adds that last year Collins did a program on paper airplanes at the Hillary Rodham Clinton Children's Library & Learning Center and, "At the end, even I had a paper airplane fly, and that's saying something."
Then it's on to the competition where participants can take what Collins has taught them and make their own airplanes. There will be people on hand to help and all paper is provided.
"Even if you don't think you know how, come out and try. You really never know."
And she stresses that all airplanes must be made on-site.
"We've had people try to bring them, but we don't allow that," Fortune says.
There will also be food trucks, activities and vendors.
Registration prices are $20 per family in advance, $25 the day of the event and there is no limit on the number of family members. One person costs the same as eight.
Even if people don't want to actually make and throw planes themselves, Fortune says, it's still an entertaining morning.
"It's just fun to watch, especially the kids. It's so fun to watch them go out and try and give it their all."
Weekend on 09/05/2019