Hundreds of multi-colored pingpong balls dropped from the sky as adults and children alike scrambled to catch them in an effort to win prizes at the Palouse Days event on Saturday.

People lined the streets of Palouse, munching on funnel cakes, clapping, waving and whooping for their friends and family as the Palouse Days parade processed down Main Street.

The small town, a mere 20 miles from Pullman, hosts this community-sponsored event every year.

Janet Barstow, a Palouse resident who volunteered and helped organize the event, said the proceeds will benefit the new community center being built in the town this year.

She said Palouse Days has everything from live music and dancing to a barley cook-off. The program also boasted an unconventional picture booth and pingpong ball drop from a helicopter hovering over the town.

“We love to share our town,” Barstow said. “It’s my favorite day of the year – a time to bring people together to have a great time and celebrate the end of harvest.” She said everyone comes with the mindset to have a good time. Such an attitude becomes contagious to produce a wonderful event for people to enjoy, she said.

The day started with the parade, followed by an egg toss competition, pingpong ball drop and barley cook-off. The evening ended with live music at the local tavern and a teen-friendly dance party outside.

People from all over the U.S., from places as far as Florida, sent in recipes for the barley cook-off competition, she said. After they receive the recipes, volunteers replicate them for judges to taste and then narrow down to five choices for people to vote on after tasting.

Emily Boone, a senior at Garfield Palouse High School and first princess of the Palouse Empire Fair, got in some elbow-to-elbow, wrist-to-wrist action as she waved with her fellow princesses in the parade.

Boone said she loves to see people come out and experience their hidden gem in the Palouse.

Mary Rothlisberger, Palouse resident and unconventional photographer, coaxed visitors to choose from an array of props and costumes to pose for a photo shoot to raise money for the community center with hopes to incite some laughs.

“I think Palouse is the best place in the whole world, because the people here are so interested and invested in the community and sharing it with others,” Rothlisberger said.

Tiana Gregg, co-owner of the Green Frog, a small cafe in Palouse, said the event is great for local businesses and provides an opportunity for the community to get together to have a great time with people they’ve known their whole lives, and people that they’ve just met.

“It gives our town a chance to shine,” she said.

Gregg said the celebration wouldn’t have been possible without the help of all the volunteers from the Palouse Grain Growers and the Palouse Chamber of Commerce. She said people rally and everyone multi-tasks to create a great day with high spirits.