The Pilot Club of Demopolis is looking for feedback from the community on a new fundraiser set for late summer. With enough community support, the Pilot Club will organize a game of “Clue: Demopolis.”

Twenty-five members of the community will participate as “characters” in the game, and Mayor John Laney, Judge Vince Deas and Probate Judge Laurie Hall have all expressed support in participating.

Though a few “characters” will be pre-determined, about 20-22 people will be nominated for a role for $5 per nomination. Nominees will portray themselves as characters, rather than a fictional person.

“At the end of the day, it’s the person who raises the most money in their name who will get to be a character,” said Pilot Club member Dana Coats Mabry, who is in charge of the fundraiser.

Once the characters are all set, the organization will host a party in July or August where the game will take place. Participants, including the characters themselves, will be given a script filled with clues to determine who committed the crime, and the first person to correctly name the culprit will be given a cash prize.

“It’s important to add that although the script will be Demopolis-centric, it will not be based on anything which is actually occurring in any way.  It is 100 percent purely fictional, fun, and most importantly, raising money for a good cause,” Mabry said.

Not everyone who attends the party will be required to participate, and none of the script will be acted out by the characters, though additional plot developments may be provided by an emcee.

Crimes will also be Demopolis-centric, such as hijacking at Christmas on the River float or impersonating the piano-playing ghost at Gaineswood.

Mabry said the inspiration for the new fundraiser came from thinking how much more fun a mystery game would be if it were unique to someone’s own hometown.

“Instead of a character being Miss Idlewild, The Busy-Body, it would be more fun to have the characters be people we know who will portray themselves,” she said.

Proceeds from the fundraiser will go towards the Pilot Club’s various charities, such as camps for individuals with traumatic brain injuries and other community assistance.

Nominations will be made at local businesses or by contacting members of the Pilot Club. Payments will be made at the local business or to a PayPal account. The Demopolis Times will publish a list of the top nominees throughout the nomination period.

A deck of cards featuring artistic portraits of each character will be also available for purchase at the party and throughout the year, though it will not be tied to the “Clue: Demopolis” game in any way.

Support for this fundraiser can be expressed by contacting Mabry at 256-614-9466 or kdanacoatsmabry@gmail.com. Mabry said the club members plan to decide whether or not to move forward with the fundraiser, which they hope will become an annual event, by April or May.

(This article originally appeared in the Wednesday, February 20 issue of the Demopolis Times.)