Evansville’s West Side Nut Club Donates Over Half-a-Million Dollars to Non-Profits and Schools

For just over 100 years, Franklin Street on Evansville's west side becomes the place to be in town as the West Side Nut Club hosts the annual Fall Festival during the first full week of October. Over the course of six days, thousands upon thousands of people converge on the stretch of Franklin Street between St. Joe and Wabash Avenue of Flags to enjoy a variety of food items cooked up by hundreds of non-profits from the area as well as play carnival games and ride rides in the midway. Since its inception, the purpose of the festival was not only to give residents something fun to do but to also raise money for those in the city who needed a helping hand. As the years have gone on, not only has the festival grown in size but so has the amount of money the Club is able to distribute each year with over $8 million dollars being donated since 1921 which includes last night's donations handed out during the Club's annual Founder's Day Banquet.

West Side Nut Club Donates Over Half-a-Million Dollars to Evansville Charities and Schools

The annual Founder's Day Banquet first began back in 1966 as not only a way to distribute the money, but to recognize and celebrate the individual organizations receiving it for the work they were doing in the community. That tradition continued Wednesday night for the 56th consecutive year as the Club handed over 100 checks totaling more than half-a-million dollars to a variety of organizations and schools in the city.

This year's event also marked the first time in its history the West Side Nut Club was able to donate funds to every school within the EVSC as well as all five parochial schools.

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As anyone in the Nut Club will tell you, if it weren't for the public's support of the festival and the annual 50/50 half pot that has become a major part of that week since it debuted in 2019, the large sum of money they were able to donate would not have been possible.

Check out this year's donation recipients and the amount each received in the graphic below and get ready to help replenish the fund when the 2022 Fall Festival and 50/50 half pot kicks off on Monday, October 3rd.

(Click image for larger view)