LILLIAN, Ala. — One of the Gulf Coast’s quirkier holiday traditions is turning 40. The Optimist Club of Perdido Bay will host the 40th Annual Labor Day Mullet Festival on Monday, Sept. 7, 2026, bringing the usual mix of races, fried fish, live music and family games back to two Widell Avenue venues in Lillian.
The festival has been a Labor Day fixture in the small Baldwin County community for four decades, and organizers say the formula has not changed much: early-morning races at the park, a full day of food and activities at the community club, and proceeds that go straight back to local children and teens.
Race Morning at Lillian Recreational Park
The day begins at Lillian Recreational Park, 33914 Widell Avenue, with registration for the Run for the Mullet 5K Run/Walk from 6 to 7 a.m. A flag presentation is scheduled for 7:15 a.m., followed by the start of the 5K at 7:30 a.m.
Age-group awards and a runners’ party follow the race. At 8 a.m., younger and less competitive participants get their turn with the Mullet Fun Run, held inside the park with the start and finish near the center pavilion.
Breakfast, Auction and the Famous Mullet Toss
Across town at the Lillian Community Club, 34148 Widell Avenue, festival activities open with breakfast from 7 to 9 a.m. Breakfast plates cost $5, and children 8 and younger eat free.
A silent auction and bake sale run from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m., giving early arrivals first shot at donated goods and home-baked treats. The event’s signature attraction — the Mullet Toss — is scheduled from 10 a.m. to noon, with age-level prizes awarded at 12:30 p.m. in the Main Hall.
Lunch, Music and Drawings
Lunch will be served from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. at $12 a plate, again with free meals for children 8 and younger. Diners can choose a mullet, catfish or barbecue sandwich plate, each served with potato salad, baked beans, dessert and tea.
Live music runs from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. The festival wraps up at 2:15 p.m. with a 50/50 drawing and an Optimist quilt drawing, and winners do not need to be present to collect.
Proceeds Go to Local Kids
The Optimist Club of Perdido Bay is a volunteer service organization whose slogan — “Bringing Out the Best in Kids for 41 Years” — predates the festival itself. The club says every dollar of festival profit funds activities, programs and scholarships for children and teens in the Lillian and Perdido Bay area.
Race registration information for the 5K Run/Walk and Fun Run is available at OptimistClubPB.org, and additional details are available from Robin Newell at 402-677-3944.
Commemorative 40th-Anniversary Shirts
The club also offered commemorative T-shirts for the 40th annual festival, priced at $20 for youth XL and adult small through XL, and $22 for adult 2XL through 4XL. The design marks three milestones at once: 40 years of the festival, the club’s 41 years of service and the nation’s 250th anniversary.
Shirt orders were due Aug. 8, with prepaid shirts available for pickup at the pre-festival workday at 10 a.m. on Sept. 5 or at the festival itself at the Lillian Community Club.
For Lillian, the 40th Mullet Festival is both a fundraiser and a reunion — a Labor Day tradition that has outlasted four decades of changes in a fast-growing corner of Baldwin County, and one that organizers show no sign of slowing down.