The Brownwood Art Association announced Christopher Gaston as the People’s Choice award winner at the annual photo contest at the Brownwood Reunion Celebration held September 14-16 at the Art Center in downtown Brownwood.

Gaston’s work entitled “Forest Princess” was the favorite of attendees of the show who voted and determined the winner of the People’s Choice Award.

Hands-On-A-House contest officials packed cars and trailers with canned food Thursday, September 13th, as they picked up donations from each Brownwood elementary school.

The Hands-On-A-House competition officially started September 14th, and lasted 3 days during the 12th Annual Brownwood Reunion Celebration.  There were 28 contestants competing to win a hunter’s cabin who were also challenged in a food drive.  The top two winners of the food drive received an extra rest-break during the contest.

The schools began participating last year, helping to kick-start the food drive as a way to better involve the community and awareness of the hunger problem in this area.  Many of the schools held class competitions for the most donated cans.

“The winning class gets to have a pizza party,” said East Elementary Principal, Nanda Wilbourn.  “They will also have their picture taken and help load the food.”  The winning classes from each school were also recognized in local media and on Saturday afternoon during the Hands-On-A-House competition.

The 2012 Brownwood Reunion Celebration came to a close Sunday evening with unseasonably cool weather and plenty of great fun, food and music.

Sunday featured a lineup of local Christian bands performing live on the celebration stage.

Several competitions came to an end on Sunday such as Hands on a House, the photography contest, and Classic Car show.

Brownwood High School cheerleaders presented the 21st Cavalry Brigade gifts on Saturday during the Brownwood Reunion Celebration.  U.S. Army 21st Cavalry Brigade Commander Col. Neil Hersey accepted the gifts while posing with the cheerleaders at a helicopter.

The cheerleaders presented a photo and some cheer calendars that the group is currently selling as a fundraiser. Several photos of the cheerleaders with the 21st Cavalry Brigade appear in the calendar.  Brownwood High School is the adopted school of the 21st Cavalry Brigade.

After nearly 48 hours, 51-year-old David Heath was the last one standing at the Hands on a House competition at the 12th annual Brownwood Reunion Celebration, winning a custom built hunting cabin Sunday evening.

A large crowd gathered around Sunday afternoon to watch as the last few contestants endure the competition by not only keeping their hand on the house, but several added endurance challenges.  Heath was named the winner after balancing cans of green beans in one hand for well over an hour while keeping the other hand on the house.

At the start of the competition on Friday, there were 28 contestants, each eliminated as they gave in to the grueling contest.   The last two contestants, Heath and Lee Ischy (also of Brownwood) lasted 47 ½ hours.  Ischy was awarded a deer blind as the second place winner.

The Brownwood Reunion Celebration’s Classic Car Show came to a close on Sunday and announced winners of the competition.  The show featured about 50 classic vehicles and was seen by thousands of people during the Reunion weekend inside the Brownwood Coliseum.

Local car club, the Heartland Cruisers, put the show together each year, all without charging admission fees to attendees or contestants.

This year, organizers gave away six awards including People’s Choice, three Outstanding Entry awards, Longest Distance and Club Choice on Sunday.  The first four awards were determined by votes cast from attendees who visited the show over the weekend.

The 2012 Brownwood Reunion Celebration kicked into high gear Saturday with loads of attractions, competitions, food, and music.  Cool temperatures made for a nice morning run for some and a few quick rain showers didn’t stop the activities.  All of the fun continued throughout the day and was capped off on the main stage by Wade Bowen - pictured at top.

Saturday’s events started with the annual 5K/10K run where more than 500 participants took to the downtown streets to prove who was the fastest.  That event was immediately followed by the Feels Like Home Grand Parade which was followed by the Honor a Hero Parade.