TAVARES – All across Lake County, ducks are for sale – well, rubber ducks, anyway.
And residents are being encouraged to purchase one before Saturday, March 10, particularly if they enjoy a fun outdoor event, and like contributing to a good cause at the same time.
Calling it a “Quack Attack,” the Lake County Educational Foundation is getting the word out now that thousands of ducks will be returning to Wooton Park in Tavares for the upcoming No Duck Left Behind Rubber Ducky Race, when the skies and waters of Lake Dora will be filled with thousands of ducks — at least of the rubber and plastic variety.
“This is the third annual year they’ve been doing it,” said Christopher Patton, communications officer for the Lake County Public Schools. “It’s totally a lot of fun, and it’s an all-day event.”
No Duck Left Behind Rubber Ducky Race will be on March 10 from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. at Wooton Park on Lake Dora. The race begins that morning as ducks parachute to the starting gate, then compete to win their owner $5,000 toward a college scholarship.
The race is being hosted by the Educational Foundation of Lake County, and the proceeds benefit teachers and students in Lake County’s public schools.
Susan Moxley, superintendent of Lake County Schools, said the county’s teachers and students have put a lot of time and effort into this project – including two students from Lake Minneola High School who created a YouTube video to help promote the race.
“They have done some great work,” Moxley said. “This is one of many projects they have that are fantastic.”
During the event, there will also be a carnival on the shores of Lake Dora, open free to the public and featuring 50 booths set up from area schools. The booths will be offering food, games, souvenirs, moonwalks, obstacle courses and a slide.
Throughout the morning and afternoon, Jones Brothers Seaplanes will be offering seaplane rides as well.

In addition to the grand prize of a college scholarship, six other winners will be chosen during the day, and taking home prizes valued at more than $5,000.
All they have to do to enter is buy a rubber duck, which can be purchased at any of the Lake County schools by calling 352-326-1265, or by visiting the Education Foundation’s Facebook page that was created to promote the race, facebook.com/noduckleftbehindrace. One duck costs $5, and three ducks are $10.
To help promote the race, Lake Minneola High juniors Jayson White and Nicholas Resch created a promotional video that can be viewed at www.youtube.com/watch?v=coi1jsp9_Wk. It was created in their TV Production Program class, which is taught by Stuart Klatte. White created the animation for the video using Blender, a software for 3D modeling and animation. Resch created the soundtrack using Apple’s Soundtrack Pro. Foley.
“Mr. Klatte has done a phenomenal job with the program and giving students the opportunity to really shine,” Moxley said.
The Educational Foundation of Lake County is a 501c3 non-profit support organization for the Lake County Public School District. The foundation, based at 910 E. Dixie Ave. in Leesburg, is autonomous from the school district but partners with the county government agency to provide programs and services for teachers and students alike in grades K-12. It was formed in 1988 and is managed by a voluntary board of community leaders.
To learn more, call the foundation at 1-352-326-1265.

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