Minden’s 7th annual Duck Derby Extravaganza draws community

WEBSTER PARISH, La. (KTAL/KMSS) – The seventh annual Duck Derby Extravaganza took over downtown Minden on Thursday evening.

The fun, family-friendly event featured plenty of food, vendors, live music, and activities for the kids.

It centers around a thrilling duck race where hundreds of plastic ducks float through a course created with the help of the Minden Fire Department toward the finish line.

A duck costs just $5 and all the money raised helps the chamber of commerce help others.

“We host many events throughout the year. We do a new teacher breakfast. We host the Christmas in Minden Festival throughout the Christmas season. We do 15 Under 40 young professional events. Many events throughout the year that we do to give back to our community and our local businesses here in town. So that’s what this money will go towards” said Stephanie Barnette, president and CEO of the Greater Minden Chamber.

She adds that locals have proven to love the extravaganza.

“One of our board members and I were talking this morning and we couldn’t believe how we pulled off the first one, and here we are seven years later, and it’s just gotten bigger and better every year,” she said. “We’re so excited to be able to do this for our community.”

The winning duck got its owner a $1,000 cash prize. Second place was awarded $500, while third place received $250.

There was also a fireworks show after the sun went down.