Parade draws biggest crowd yet
EAST BRADY, Clarion County — The East Brady Riverfest, in its nearly three decade run, has always brought in a big crowd.
Sally Snow, festival organizer, said many people enjoy the family friendly atmosphere and seeing friends that they do not normally see.
“We hear a lot of people talk about seeing people they went to school with,” Snow said.
The 29th annual event was Friday, Saturday and Sunday. It started Friday night with an hourlong parade. Snow said it was extremely well attended.
“We got a bigger crowd than I think we've ever had,” Snow said.
Attendance figures for the three-day event were not available this morning. Snow, however, acknowledged that steady to sometimes heavy rain hurt turnout on Saturday
“The numbers were down Saturday but at the same time I was surprised that so many people still came out, as bad as the weather was.”
Despite the soggy Saturday, none of the events, including the fireworks that closed the night, were washed out.
“The fireworks were good,” Snow said. “Everyone seemed to like them.”
Several new events highlighted this year's Riverfest.
A 5K run and walk on Saturday morning was new. Also a new feature, the Carnegie Science Center held a children's craft event, and a cornhole tournament took place Saturday.Sunday kicked off with an interfaith service and continued with music, an auction and pet parade.“The community church service was very well attended,” Snow said.The event featured 33 food and craft vendors, several children's activities, live music and games.Snow said the Riverfest continues to grow. It originally was in town, but she said it could not hold nearly as many vendors as it can now. The festival moved to Graham Field about nine years ago.“We're already planning for next year,” Snow said. “That will be our 30th year. That's going to be a big one.”
