Larger planning group helps enhance Butler Fall Festival
The Butler Fall Festival typically brings thousands of people to downtown Butler, and the organizers of the annual fall celebration are prepared for them this year.
The board of directors has booked about 120 vendors, musical entertainment and a new Kid’s Zone for the festival on Saturday, Sept. 28, which will feature an educational look into agriculture in Butler County.
Dahn Kilroy, vice president of the festival’s board of directors, said these attractions, in addition to the growing car cruise portion of the event, are poised to make this year’s Fall Festival one of the largest in its more than 40-year history.
“We get thousands every year,” Kilroy said. “Thousands of people come out, just walking and driving in. You get so many vendors who come, everybody says how good of a time it is.”
According to Kilroy, the festival’s board had more help setting up this year’s event than it had in recent years, which allowed organizers to bring more to the festival this time around. Planning for the event, Kilroy said, starts months ahead of time, so the festival and its organizers are prepared for the day.
Kilroy said with all the preparations made, the organizers actually can take time to enjoy the fruits of their labor on the day of the festival.
“We get to enjoy it and check out the vendors and get feedback from everyone,” Kilroy said. “We always like to have new things, things that are fresh. We don't want to have the same thing every year.”
Christina Green, president of the festival’s board of directors, said there will be at least 13 food trucks at the event, which is one of the big draws for locals. In addition to the vendors for food and crafts, the event’s organizers also are trying to highlight the downtown businesses, Green said.
“We're really trying to pay attention to small businesses that live on Main Street,” Green said.
The Kid’s Zone, too, got special attention this year, and will feature activities that will teach children about gardening and agriculture in a fun way. Green said there also will be a petting zoo and bounce houses, but the agriculture stations are new to the Butler Fall Festival.
“It's not just something fun, it's also educational and teaches kids about Butler County farming,” Green said. “Everything is really hands-on, and we really let them take over the Kid’s Zone.”
As for entertainment, there will be DJs playing tunes throughout the day.
Kilroy emphasized the Butler Fall Festival is entirely planned and run by volunteers, who get involved in the event to bring something special to downtown Butler each year to kick off the fall season.
“(It’s) people who care about the community and want to do something special,” Kilroy said. “We want to do it for the community.”
The Butler Fall Festival takes place from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. Saturday, Sept. 28, on Main Street in Butler. For more information on the event, visit butlerfallfestival.com.
