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Blue Springs, MO —
After months of hard work and planning, the 2012 Blue Springs Fall Fun Festival is ready to welcome thousands of visitors to downtown Blue Springs.
The festival opens at noon today and runs through Sunday. Free festival shuttles will run from the Office Depot parking lot on Missouri 7 and from the White Oak Shopping Center. The shuttle runs from 5 to 10 p.m. today and from 9 a.m. to 10:30 p.m. Saturday. There is no service on Sunday.
In addition to the variety of food vendors – including the well-known Timothy Steakburger booth – and craft booths, the children’s area and carnival will be among the main attractions at the festival.
Sue McMilian, special events coordinator for the Blue Springs Chamber of Commerce, said she is eager for the start of the annual festival and cannot wait for community members to see what is in store this year.
“I love seeing the families having fun with their children going from booth to booth and the kids’ eyes lighting up, especially when they go to the carnival,” McMilian said. “The festival wouldn’t be possible without the hundreds of volunteers that help the chamber run it, and watching the volunteers giving back to the Blue Springs community and reaching out to help the booth holders or festival attendees always gives me the warm fuzzies.”
On the Main Stage, the country band 6 Degrees West will perform at 8:30 p.m. tonight. Pieces of Jake will be the headliner Saturday, also performing at 8:30 p.m. The stage is inside the County Beverage Beer Garden at 11th and Main streets. Limited seating is available outside the gated area. Those who want to watch the concert from inside must be 21 years old and pay a $4 cover charge after 6 p.m.
The Blue Springs Fall Fun Festival Parade returns with the theme “Peace, Love and Rock ‘n’ Roll.” It begins at 10 a.m. Saturday at 15th and Vesper streets, moving south to Main Street. It will then go east on Main before turning north on 10th Street. Roads will be closed about one hour before the parade starts, so be sure to arrive early for good seats.
“The Blue Springs Fall Fun Festival is a wonderful event. It’s a group of people from the Blue Springs community planning an event for their fellow citizens that allows everyone to come together and enjoy a free, fun, safe festival,” McMilian said. “It’s also a great time to visit the downtown merchants that make their home on Main Street. They have some great shops with very unique items. We encourage everyone to visit their shops and see what they have to offer.”
After months of hard work and planning, the 2012 Blue Springs Fall Fun Festival is ready to welcome thousands of visitors to downtown Blue Springs.
The festival opens at noon today and runs through Sunday. Free festival shuttles will run from the Office Depot parking lot on Missouri 7 and from the White Oak Shopping Center. The shuttle runs from 5 to 10 p.m. today and from 9 a.m. to 10:30 p.m. Saturday. There is no service on Sunday.
In addition to the variety of food vendors – including the well-known Timothy Steakburger booth – and craft booths, the children’s area and carnival will be among the main attractions at the festival.
Sue McMilian, special events coordinator for the Blue Springs Chamber of Commerce, said she is eager for the start of the annual festival and cannot wait for community members to see what is in store this year.
“I love seeing the families having fun with their children going from booth to booth and the kids’ eyes lighting up, especially when they go to the carnival,” McMilian said. “The festival wouldn’t be possible without the hundreds of volunteers that help the chamber run it, and watching the volunteers giving back to the Blue Springs community and reaching out to help the booth holders or festival attendees always gives me the warm fuzzies.”
On the Main Stage, the country band 6 Degrees West will perform at 8:30 p.m. tonight. Pieces of Jake will be the headliner Saturday, also performing at 8:30 p.m. The stage is inside the County Beverage Beer Garden at 11th and Main streets. Limited seating is available outside the gated area. Those who want to watch the concert from inside must be 21 years old and pay a $4 cover charge after 6 p.m.
The Blue Springs Fall Fun Festival Parade returns with the theme “Peace, Love and Rock ‘n’ Roll.” It begins at 10 a.m. Saturday at 15th and Vesper streets, moving south to Main Street. It will then go east on Main before turning north on 10th Street. Roads will be closed about one hour before the parade starts, so be sure to arrive early for good seats.
“The Blue Springs Fall Fun Festival is a wonderful event. It’s a group of people from the Blue Springs community planning an event for their fellow citizens that allows everyone to come together and enjoy a free, fun, safe festival,” McMilian said. “It’s also a great time to visit the downtown merchants that make their home on Main Street. They have some great shops with very unique items. We encourage everyone to visit their shops and see what they have to offer.”
Among the new things to watch out for are the festival T-shirts. This is the first year in the festival’s history that a T-shirt has been created. The orange, tie-dyed shirt fits in with the parade’s theme and can be purchased at the chamber of commerce office, 1000 W. Main St. The cost is $15 for S, M, L and XL and $17 for XXL and XXXL.
Another new feature is the chamber’s partnership with Centerpoint Urgent Care Center for the “Chill Zone.” The area, which is at 10th and Main streets, will be staffed by the Medical Reserve Corps of Greater Kansas City who will be able to take care of minor bumps, bruises or blisters. As in the past, the Blue Springs Police Department Citizens Police Academy will be providing child identification kits at no charge.
“This is a great service the police offer, and families should absolutely take advantage of it,” McMilian said. “September is Emergency Preparedness Month and Blue Springs Central Jackson County Emergency Management Agency and the Community Emergency Response Team will also be in that area (Chill Zone) with emergency preparedness information for people to pick up.”
McMilian said the festival is a celebration of all things Blue Springs.
“The Blue Springs Fall Fun Festival is a celebration of Blue Springs put on by Blue Springs volunteers and citizens,” said McMilian. “The Blue Springs community is a wonderful community that supports its neighborhood businesses and its neighbors. The community here works hard together on projects to better the community in many ways. The festival is an opportunity for Blue Springs to celebrate and show off a little just how much it has grown and to share its successes with everyone.”
