As the autumn season takes hold of southwest Michigan, Cassopolis’ seventh annual Harvest Fest, held from 5 to 8 p.m. Oct. 6 in Dr. T.K. Lawless Park, will offer some new attractions for kids and families.

The Cass County Parks and Recreation Department and The Friends of Cass County Parks will host the autumn event, which encourages children to come dressed in costumes for the evening. Pairing classic harvest events with some new attractions, Cass County Parks Director Scott Wyman said the department wanted to offer more for residents to enjoy to kick off the cooler-weathered season.

“It’s a good event for families and kids to have fun during a Saturday night,” Wyman said Tuesday.

The event will include a park scavenger hunt, which has been updated from last year’s model, as well as hayrides, pumpkin and face painting, a raptor presentation by Aimee Pica, train rides and live music.

“We’ll have an inflatable obstacle course and a new game for kids to play,” Wyman said.

The game, entitled “60 Second to Glory,” was suggested by one of the employees in the department’s office and is modeled off NBC’s hit show, “Minutes to Win It.”

“They have 60 seconds to complete a fun task and whoever does it best gets a prize at the end of the evening,” Wyman said.

Live music will be provided by local band Plan B, which features bluegrass, country and folk music.

“They approached me about playing during the fest free of charge, and I thought it was a great idea,” Wyman said.

Currently, the fest needs about 30 volunteers to operate smoothly. Wyman said the department has been fortunate with county volunteers stepping up, but he could always use more.

“Help with parking, taking tickets, handing out food … we can always use extra volunteers for the event,” Wyman said.

Tickets for Harvest Fest are $3 per person, with children 2 and younger admitted free. A rain date has been schedule for Oct. 13. For more information, call Wyman at (269) 445-4456 or email scottwy@cassco.org.