The Brownwood Reunion Celebration kicked off Friday night with one of its most anticipated competitions of the weekend, Hands on a House.

This year, 13 contestants began the competition Friday evening by placing their hand on the custom-built cabin style playhouse.  One participant dropped out before the competition began.  The one who keeps their hand on the house the longest throughout Reunion weekend will win the custom-built “shotgun shack” by Kirby Cabler.

Every contestant will win a prize according to organizers, which includes a Yeti cooler (2nd place), a “Cracker Barrel” rocking chair (3rd), $150 Walmart gift card (4th), $100 American Express giftcard (5th), a wet/dry vac and several gift cards.

Each year the Hands on a House competition also involves a canned food drive and it’s already well underway.  This year, the food drive benefits Good Samaritan Ministries and the St. John’s Episcopal Church Food Bank.  Local elementary and middle schools helped get the food drive going with a contest of their own bringing in nearly 4600 cans.  The class (one at each school) that brings the most cans wins a pizza party; the winners of this school food drive will be announced at a later time during the Hands on a House competition.

Spectators are encouraged to contribute canned goods on behalf of the contestants to help them earn extra breaks on the house.

Several other side-competitions will be held during the event to help either eliminate contestants or reward them with extra breaks.  The winner is anticipated to be announced on Sunday.

This year’s competition is sponsored by Coldwell Banker, Texas Bank Mortgage, Landmark Life Insurance, Ingram Concrete, and Kirby Cabler.

Contestants are pictured at top before the competition began on Friday.  Contestants include: Richard Delgado, Brian Root, Jimmy Newton, Ricky Dixon, Angela Womack, Roy “Redd” Lee, Heather Green, Judy Helton, Lee Ischy, Bryan Gleason, Rontrell Young, Casey Carroll, and Jeff Hughes.