The annual Birdsboro Street Fair and Duck Derby will be held on Saturday, May 30, from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. in Main Bird Park, 226 N. Water St., Birdsboro.

As always, the highlight of the day will be the Duck Derby at 3:30 p.m., when people will line the banks of the Hay Creek to watch 1,800 plastic weighted ducks "race" toward the finish line.

"It's really interesting," said Nicole Sapna, who organizes the event. "Birdsboro borough workers stand at the bridge, and they dump three large trash bags of ducks in the creek ... there's a wooden chute that funnels (the ducks) down, and they have to get into the single shoot to be considered."

The ducks are all standardized and reused every year. A few days before the derby, organizers will individually lay out all the ducks and match them to their sponsor.

The first to-be-determined number of ducks to cross the finish line, as well as the very last duck to cross the finish line, will be the winners. Cash prizes will be awarded to the "sponsors" of the winning ducks. Local businesses have donated the prize money for the winners. The amount of prize money will depend on how much is donated.

Proceeds from the Duck Derby will benefit the Boone Area Library. Tickets are not sold online but are available in advance at the library, 129 N. Mill St., Birdsboro, during its hours of operation: on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.; on Tuesdays and Thursdays from 1 to 8 p.m.; and on Saturdays from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. A fee will be charged per duck, or people may purchase a "Quack Pack" of five tickets.

"Typically, we'll sell a decent amount before the race," Sapna said. "But we always have some that we sell on the day. Last year, we had sold almost 800 beforehand, and then we sold the other 700 that day in the park."

Last year, sponsors included Kinetic Internet, JP Mascaro & Sons, Butler's Pantry, Lucky Squirrel Printworks, Lords & Ladies Salon, Mountz Disposal, Halter Materials & Landscape Supply, Berks Family Eyecare, Snap Fitness of Douglassville, Annamarie's on Main and Blackwood Golf Course.

Proceeds from the event will be distributed throughout the year for library programming, utilities, staff and other necessary costs. Last year, the library surpassed its $10,000 fundraising goal. Sapna is hoping that the extra ducks this year will bring in more funds.

Throughout the day, there will be entertainment, music, children's activities, crafts for sale, displays by local groups and businesses and various food trucks. New for this year, live ducks are also currently being hatched at the library; the ducks will be in the park on the day of the event before returning to the farm.

"(We're) really excited for that," Sapna said. "We found a farm that does chickens and duck eggs, and we thought it'd be really cool to incorporate that into the whole month of May."

For more information about the event, search for "Birdsboro Street Fair and Duck Derby" on Facebook or email Sapna at birdsboroduckderby@gmail.com.

"Our goal is for the library to raise money, but also bring awareness of other local businesses and nonprofits in our area," Sapna said.