It began with a bang, and ended in a slam dunk.

On a sun-filled day, the 23rd annual Palmerton Community Festival culminated Sunday with a large crowd in tow.As usual, an expansive assortment of food, entertainment, rides, crafts, games, and a Chinese auction, kept fairgoers occupied.In addition, a duck race was held to raise funds for the West End Fire Co. of Palmerton, as well as the Palmerton Halloween Parade.There was also a free child identification program conducted by the Lehigh Valley Community Resource Center, where they electronically scanned a child's fingerprints and took a video and photo, to be put on a CD, which is Amber Alert certified. The free service was supported by the Lehighton 9/12 Project, and Customer 1 Auto of Walnutport and Lehighton.Also, the Palmerton Area Historical Society provided a bus tour of Palmerton in celebration of its Centennial this year.As her daughter, Mariah, scampered from ride to ride, Deanna Eckley, of Lehighton, said she and her family attend the festival because "We always enjoy coming here for the fun."Susie Arner, festival chairperson, said the final day of the event couldn't have gone any better."It was an absolutely amazing day," Arner said. "Crowds were everywhere, and some of the food stands sold out as recently as 4:30 p.m."Arner said a huge crowd gathered to hear musical entertainment provided by the Pennsylvania Villagers, Midnight Special, and Twitty Fever."Midnight Special was a large attraction," she said. "They brought in a fabulous crowd in the afternoon."Except for a brief bump in the road Saturday afternoon when heavy rains poured down, Arner said the festival once again thrived."It was a great success, as usual, and I'd like to thank the people that helped make it possible," she said. "We look forward to another 23 years."