Cowboy carnival raises thousands for Vista Boys & Girls Club

By: SHAYNA CHABNER - Staff Writer | Saturday, November 4, 2006 11:20 PM PST ∞

VISTA ---- Scowling at her captors, 15-year-old Mattea Cauzza grasped the metal bars of the small, portable wood jail.

For $5, Mattea could be free of confinement. But that was only if she could scrounge up the money.

"I was just sitting over there, and he came and said I had been arrested," she said. "I wanna go back to my booth."

The jail, run by Oceanside resident Joe Deggendorf ---- otherwise known as Sheriff Cobb ---- was one of many attractions Saturday at the Boys & Girls Club of Vista's Denim Days Benefit for Kids. The Western-themed fundraiser, at the Antique Gas & Steam Engine Museum in north Vista, also featured a chili cook-off, line-dancing lessons, children's carnival booths and a frying pan toss.

"It's a great place," said Mark Frantz, an Oceanside resident whose son and daughter belong to the club. "We are having a lot of fun."

Frantz was among a handful of men who tested their skills at the frying pan toss ---- a competition, similar to shot put, where a giant, metal pan is thrown across a dusty field. Whoever manages to fling the pan the farthest, bounces included, wins.

"I was just trying to figure out how the thing worked," Frantz said.

Following the afternoon of competitions and cowboy games, the more than 200 guests sat down for a chicken, tri-tip, hamburger and hot dog barbecue dinner, and a live auction. Among the items being sold were an collection of bedazzled denim jackets, decorated by local organizations, celebrities and community members.

Proceeds from the event benefit the club and its youth programming. Organizers hoped to collect between $30,000 and $40,000 by the end of the evening, said Lori Butler, the club's executive director.

The donations are essential to the club's success, Butler said. The annual fee for kids to join the program is $50 ---- and many who cannot afford the membership fee receive scholarships ---- while the organization's cost is about $600 a child, Butler said.

The club hosts two major fundraisers during the year, the fall Denim Days event and a Valentine's gala in February.

"We wanted this day to be about the kids," Butler said from behind bars. "It's a more fun way to raise money, than just sitting at the table."

The jail, which housed everybody from Butler to a cow mascot, was by far one of the more popular, interactive activities throughout the day.

Adults and children alike were happy to fork over a dollar and fill out an arrest warrant to see their friends and family members behind bars. In return, the unsuspecting convicts spent ten minutes locked up and were charged a minimum $5 bounty before being released.

"It's a fun type of jail," said Deggendorf, who also volunteered as the sheriff at last year's event. "Here, they will take anybody."

Contact staff writer Shayna Chabner at (760) 631-6604 or schabner@nctimes.com.

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