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 One such community, Delavan, lies between Peoria, Bloomington and
Springfield. Over the Labor Day weekend Delavan puts on a wonderful
fall festival that celebrates the close of summer and welcomes fall.
More importantly, the four day event that is packed with events for
every age is also a gigantic homecoming bringing together local
friends and neighbors, as well as those wandering former Delavanites
and family members from far-off places.
The hub of the activities is near the downtown area in beautiful
Lake Park. The festival features a wide variety of activities from
bingo to music and dances, a carnival, outdoor movie nights, kids’
games, a parade, plenty of food-vendor offerings and many different
events, varying on each of the days.
Saturday featured a D O nut race, which involved eating delicious
fried donuts, an all community church service kicked off Sunday and
the annual 10-K Road Race and Fun Run on Monday was followed by a
parade.
 Local athletic, civic organizations and church groups sponsored a
variety of fun foods and entertainment booths along side crafts and
product vendors that offered a variety of choice goods.
The Delavan Fall Festival's diverse offerings and a few of its
larger competitions drew considerable interest from surrounding
areas as well. In particular, the Truck and Tractor Pull competition
on Sunday drew hundreds to the backside of the park. Open sided
tents, portable chairs and coolers of refreshments accompanied this
crowd who were there to leisurely watch competitions from the
hillside. Those who were less interested in the results were sent to
fetch delicious food from the other end of the park.
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Special chicken or walleye dinners were featured, along with
the Community Club's popular grilled seasoned pork chop and
bratwurst sandwiches available each day. Strawberry short cake
was a special treat along with an old-fashioned ice cream
social.
It sounds good, doesn’t it? If you missed this wonderful Labor
Day celebration in Delavan, there is always next year.
But even sooner than that, you have another opportunity next
weekend when Mount Pulaski and Atlanta host their fall
festivals.
Later in September, the 44th Annual Abraham Lincoln National
Railsplitting Contest returns to the Logan County Fairgrounds in
Lincoln over the Sept. 19 and 20th weekend. The festival
includes two days of nationally sanctioned rail splitting
contests, as well as pioneer period activities, food and craft
vendors; a great fall family event.
We hope you will be able to get out and enjoy some of those good
times, some of the best the Heartland has to offer.
Watch LDN for further details and reminders, and for all the
coverage that follows each of these wonderful events as they
unfold and become another layer of our rich heritage.
[LDN]
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