LILLIAN - Mullet will rule supreme in Lillian on Labor Day, September 3, for the 21st Annual Mullet Festival, sponsored by the Optimist Club of Perdido Bay, an organization that benefits children.

The festival is the club’s main fundraiser, according to Lee Hoffman, club secretary.

“It’s a popular event for the community and it’s our main fundraiser for the club,” Hoffman said on Tuesday, adding that last year’s event “raised over $10,000 and $6,000 went to scholarships” for graduating seniors.

The festival will feature an entire day’s worth of activities beginning as early as 6:30 a.m. with a “bountiful breakfast” served until 9:30 a.m. by the club at a cost of $4 per person. 

The breakfast along with games, crafts, exhibits, rides and all the event’s activities will be held at the Lillian Community Club, 34148 Widell Road, about a quarter-mile west of the Lillian Bridge, off U.S. 98. 

At 7:30 a.m., the annual “5K Run for the Mullet” kicks off which will be followed by a “Fun Run” at 8 a.m.  After the races, runners will receive refreshments and awarded prizes. 

Hoffman said that the 5K run begins at the community center, follows along Lillian’s backstreets, and wraps back around to the community center. 

And from 11 a.m. until 2 p.m., a mullet dinner and baked ham will be served with take-outs also available.  Dinner is $7 per person and $3.50 per child under ten.

“We served about 400 meals last year,” Hoffman said. 

But prior to eating mullet, at 10 a.m., the infamous “Championship Mullet Toss” will take the main stage.  Contenders will compete for men and women’s trophies and of course, the esteemed recognition that one can throw a fish farther than the rest. 

Door prizes, a silent auction with golf packages, food and beverages from local vendors, will also occur all day, and a raffle drawing with the possibility of winning $1,000, $400, $200 and $100 in cash.

Hoffman said that Emerald Coast Divers will deliver the winning tickets from a skydive jump at about 4 p.m. 

The fundraiser also benefits the Special Olympics, Christmas Toys for Girls and Boys, a Kid’s Fishing Rodeo, Just Say No to Drugs, and other causes including programs sponsored at area schools.