After making its grand return to downtown in 2024 after nearly a century, the wheels are already in motion for the next Turlock Melon Carnival.

This year’s Turlock Melon Carnival is slated for Sept. 20 and 21 in the heart of downtown Turlock, and community members are already jumping at the bit to be involved.

“We’ve had overwhelming community support,” said marketing coordinator Alix Ribeiro-Clausen. “We were very impressed with the number of people who came out last year, all the sponsors that we had. We've learned that community and togetherness and hometown pride really brings a lot of people together, and that's why everybody was so excited to be there last year and are looking forward to this year’s festivities.”

The Turlock Melon Carnival was first held in 1911, organized by the Board of Trade in hopes of promoting and marketing the local melon industry and melon shipping businesses. It was an immediate hit with community members and visitors, drawing an estimated 5,000 people. A second carnival was held in 1912, drawing 10,000. The carnival was held intermittently until 1925 and by 1956, it had transformed into what we know today as the Stanislaus County Fair.

Many of the events and activities from yesteryear were applied to the carnival when it was revived last year, and they will take place once more come late September. That includes the Miss Melon Pageant, the Kiddie Kaper Parade, and Carnival Row. There will also be a wide variety of vendors lining the streets.

Sign-up forms for the pageant and parade are available at TurlockMelonCarnival.com, as well as applications for carnival games, vendors and sponsors.

The biggest change has been the days. Last year’s event was held on a Friday and Saturday, while this year’s will take place on Saturday and Sunday, which means community members won’t need to choose between Friday Night Lights and will still have the entire weekend to enjoy the nostalgic celebration.

The fun begins at 5 p.m. on that Saturday with the opening ceremonies in the area of Main and Center streets. Shortly thereafter at 6 will be the Miss Melon Pageant, which is open to those ages 5 to 105. It is directed this year by last year’s Mature Miss Melon, Dr. Diana Galvan. Interest forms are due by Aug. 16, and all are invited to register as long as they are within 25 miles of Turlock.

“We had a lot of fun last year with the pageant. Everybody really enjoyed it,” Ribeiro-Clausen said.

After sunset Saturday will be a drone show dedicated to all things melons. The day will wrap up with live music and until 10 p.m.

The carnival will continue Sunday at 11 a.m. with the popular Kiddie Kaper Parade, organized by Alegria Performing Arts Studio. There, children are encouraged to dress up in their “melon-best” to grace the downtown crowds. Last year, several wore melon-patterned clothes, melon-shaped accessories, and some even wore melon costumes.

“We definitely want the parade to be bigger this year,” Ribeiro-Clausen said. “It's totally free for people to sign up, and we ask that they come in their melon-best, whatever that may be. Last year, we had a little group dress up like farmers, and they had a wagon with papier-mâché watermelon. Some were even holding small watermelons. It was so fun.”

Sunday’s festivities will wrap up at 5 p.m. Until then, there will be live performances on two different stages, line dancing, a petting zoo and Carnival Row for those of all ages to partake in.

On Carnival Row will be local nonprofits, parent-teacher organizations, student groups, sports teams and other organizations hosting activities, raising money for their respective causes. Each organization will keep 100% of their profits from the event, an important part of the Melon Carnival committee’s effort to give back to the community.

“It can be a beanbag toss, a ring toss, a spin the wheel, anything like that. We want as many groups involved in that, and all the information is available on our website,” Ribeiro-Clausen said.
Community members and visitors are encouraged to keep tabs on the event website, www.TurlockMelonCarnival.com, and on their social media pages, @TurlockMelonCarnival, for all the latest updates.