WEST MIDDLESEX, PA. The big top is going back up as circus comes to town again

The circus returns as a fund-raiser for the Kiwanis Club.
By VERONICA GORLEY
VINDICATOR STAFF WRITER
WEST MIDDLESEX, Pa. -- Ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls: Get ready to watch the exploits of performing puppies, ponderous pachyderms and prancing ponies. The circus is coming back to town.
The Kelly Miller Bros. Circus will have performances 4:30 p.m. and 7:30 p.m. Monday at Lackawannock Township Park on Pa. Route 318.
The circus is a fund-raiser for the Kiwanis Club of West Middlesex, and the club will receive a greater percentage of the presale for advance ticket sales, said the Rev. Donald Wilson, circus committee co-chairman.
Programs to benefit: The Rev. Mr. Wilson said the club's profits will benefit youth soccer, softball and baseball, its scholarship fund, Student of the Month program, community-wide Halloween parade and other programs.
Free show: The elephants' raising of the circus tent is a free show. Circus vehicles will begin to arrive around 6 a.m. Monday and the tent-raising begins around 8 a.m. The circus grounds open at 3:30 p.m.
This is the third time the Kelly Miller Bros. Circus has performed in West Middlesex, and Mr. Wilson said he is pleased with the attention its performers pay to children and special-needs children.
"They're such a family-oriented show -- good, wholesome entertainment," he said.
Other activities besides the show under the Big Top include clowns and pony and elephant rides.
About the circus: Founded in 1938, the Kelly Miller Bros. Circus will travel nearly 10,000 miles to perform in more than 200 locations in 16 different states from March to October.
Featured acts, supplemented by a live, three-piece band, include performing elephants, dogs, llamas, ponies and camels. Aerial performances using ropes, swings and rings, a trapeze artist and balancing acts also will be highlighted.
Tickets for the show in advance are $5 for children under 12 and $7 for adults. Admission is $7 for children or $9 for adults Monday.
Advance tickets can be purchased at Dairy Queen in West Middlesex, Black's Market Place, First National Bank in West Middlesex and Shop-N-Save in Hermitage.