Ellwood City is gearing up for its 37th Annual Ellwood City Arts, Crafts and Food Festival starting on June 29 and running till July 1. There will be no shortage of fun with continuous all-day entertainment, vendors and crafts.
The festivals activities and entertainment start at 11 a.m. and don’t stop until 10 p.m. The children’s area is returning and will be offering different fun and engaging activities, some of the activities are free and some will cost a small fee. Also returning is the Butterfly Tent and a new maze.
This year is the First Annual Festival Hall of Fame, commemorated by a souvenir book. Inductees for 2018 are Mary Wiley, a founder of the Festival; Tom Martz, longest-tenured Chairman of the Festival Committee at 22 years; and Dom Viccari, an integral part of the Festival since its beginning until 2015.
Going back to its original roots the Festival is having food vendors and musical acts that appeared at the first Ellwood City Festival said Festival Chairwoman, Raylene Boots.
“Featured in the souvenir book are articles about Holy Redeemer, a food vendor for the Festival since the first Festival in 1981,” Boots said. “Also featured are two bands who played the very first Festival, and will appear again for this years. They are Brok’n Pic and No Money Down.”
The souvenir book will be available during the Festival all three days at the Information Booth behind Folino Entertainment Stage for only $2.
There is no entry fee for the Festival. Many people walk or ride a shuttle, but there are parking lots that charge a fee.
There are four lots associated with the Festival. Each lot charges a fee. All lots are run by local nonprofit organizations, so the proceeds benefit these groups as well as the Festival Committee. We use our portion of the proceeds to run the Festival.
One parking lot is at the end of Leslie Sabo Memorial Bridge (Ewing Park bridge). Proceeds from the fee go to the Ellwood Amateur Baseball Federation and the Festival Committee.
Another lot is the swimming pool lot, which is also where handicapped parking is located. The fee for this lot benefits the Laurel Soccer Boosters Friday and Saturday, and the Lincoln High School Blue Band Sunday, as well as the Festival Committee.
A third lot is the football lot near Helling Stadium. This lot benefits the Ellwood Wrestling Boosters and the Festival Committee.
The lot at the site of the old Ewing Park school benefits the Ellwood Football Boosters organization as well as the Festival Committee.
Shuttles run from Lincoln High School parking lot as well as Smokin’ Dave’s on Wampum Avenue. Visitors can park for free in those lots and ride the shuttle to the Festival. The shuttle service is provided by the Festival Committee, thanks to donation from the Lawrence County Commissioners.
The Juried Art Show is back for the 2018 Ellwood City Arts, Crafts, Food and Entertainment Festival. This year’s show will be hosted by the Ellwood City Festival Chairperson, Cathy Jones. Accepted artwork will be on display at the Trefoil Lodge in Ewing Park during the three-day event.
There are three categories for art pieces: 2D works (drawings and paintings), 3D works (sculpture and ceramics) and photography. Cash awards and Ribbons will be given for the Best of Show, one Distinguished Award in each category, (total of 3) and one Merit Award in each category (total of 3). This is for ages 16 and up. There are two separate categories one for under the age of 10 and one from the ages of 11 to 15. One ribbon will be given in each of these categories.
This article is part one of a four part series, check back tomorrow for some more new behind the scenes coverage of the Ellwood City Arts, Crafts and Food Festival.
Below is the festival entertainment schedule:
Friday, June 29, 2018
11:00 am Raising the Flag
National Anthem – Krissy Hogue
11:15 – 12:30 Little Miss Firecracker
12:30 -1:30 pm Riverside Jazz Club “We Don’t Sing”
2:00 – 3:30 pm D Major
4:00 – 5:00 pm Heart’s Desire
5:30 – 6:30 pm Dance Expressions
7:00 – 8:00 pm Nickle Plated Revolver
8:30 – 10:00 pm Brok’n Pic
Saturday, June 30, 2018
11:00 am Raising the Flag
National Anthem – Beth Mayberry Riedel
11:15 am 10K Race trophies
2:00 – 3:00 pm Studio P dancers
3:00 Lincoln Blue Band drum crew
3:30 – 4:30 pm Allegheny Drifters
5:00 – 6:00 pm Civic Chorale
6:30 – 7:45 Nick Stelter
8:30 – 10 pm Elmo’s Fire
Sunday, July 1, 2018
11:00 am Raising the Flag
National Anthem – Olivia Webb
12:00 – 1:00 pm Sanctuary Jazz
1:00 – 1:30 pm Mars Stars Jump Rope Team (on Washington Avenue)
1:30 – 2:30 pm RML Jazz
2:30 – 3:00 pm Mars Stars Jump Rope Team (on Washington Avenue)
3:00 – 4:00 pm Average Jane Ellwood City
4:30 – 5:15 pm Diamond Dance Academy dancers
5:15 – 6:00 pm No Money Down
6:30 – 8:00 Let’s Groove Tonight
8:30 – 10 pm Brighton Boys
10 pm – FIREWORKS!!!
The best deal is the 3-day Parking Pass for only $10 and you park right down in the park area. Plus you can come and go from the festival grounds as many times as you want during the day! I go to the festival all three days so it is the best deal for parking and being right at the festival itself
WHERE IS THERE A LISTING OF THE FOOD VENDORS THAT WILL BE THERE?