824 W Noble Ave
Bushnell
FL 33513
Always held on the 3rd Saturday in October, this year’s annual Fall Festival is returning to the tradition of having a different theme each year. This year’s theme is going to be “It’s a Pirate’s Life for Me” featuring all things Pirate, and promises to be loads of fun!
And this year’s fun begins with our Annual parade down Main Street. Replete with lots of floats decked out in a “Pirates of the Caribbean” flair, parade entries will compete for a 1st Place gift card for $125.00! Our hometown friends at Suncoast Credit Union are sponsoring the float decoration contest as well as the vendor booth space decoration contest at the festival, located in the Kenny Dixon Sports Complex, located at 824 W. Noble Avenue.
First place winners in both the float decoration and the vendor space decoration contests will receive a $125.00 gift card, second place entries will receive a $75.00 gift card and third place entries will receive a $50.00 gift card.
A costume contest will also be sponsored at the festival by Regions Bank. Everyone is encouraged to dress up in the Pirate theme, so pull out your old Pirate outfits from past costume parties, throw on those Mardi Gras beads and eye patches, and drop by the Regions Bank booth space at the entrance of the festival gates, and register to win! There will be a winner in the 12 yr and under Youth category, a Teen category for ages 13 to 19, and an Adult category for ages 20 yrs and up.
Retail Arts and Crafts & Food Vendors as well as Fund-Raiser Organizations can obtain an application in person at Bushnell City Hall, or by downloading one from the attachment below. You may also email Ruby Mark, Festival Coordinator at rmark@cityofbushnellfl.com and request an application. Applications will be accepted on a first-come, first-serve basis until Friday, October 13th at 5 pm.
As always, there will be lots of exciting events during the day, including the Suncoast CreditUnion Greased Pig Contest at 2:30 pm! The Greased Pig Contest will be held once again in the retention area behind the ball park, next to the skate park. Suncoast Credit Union will be offering wristband pre-sales at their office on Hwy 48 beginning September 1st through October 18th. Prices for the wristbands are: $3 for ages 3 to 13, and $5 for ages 14 to 18.
Scattered throughout the park, there are fun activities for kids of all ages, including log-sawing competitions, pony rides, rock wall climbing, mechanical bull rides, Kiddy Land activities for the little ones, and many other attractions!
And of course, there is always a huge assortment of food vendors offering everything from Italian Sausages, Pizza, Mexican Dishes, BBQ, Cakes, Pies, Ice Cream, Smoothies…the list goes on and on! The city’s local churches and non-profit organizations also offer some of the best food around, so you definitely won’t go hungry!
Under the Main Tent, a host of local talents will entertain the crowds all afternoon. Some of the wonderfully talented people this year include Miss Sarah Sarver, who will be opening our festival with the National Anthem as well as singing several beautiful songs for us.
Our MCs for the day will be Debra Palmer & Top That, who will also be gracing us with their talented voices in between acts as well as hosting a karaoke session in the afternoon. The High School Jazz band will be on board to delight us with their great music, and last year’s favorites, Ali Carneglia and Bryce Mauldin will also be on hand to treat us to their beautiful harmonies!
Then at 4:30 pm, Todd Brown’s River Junction Band will rock the tent with their Rootin’-Tootin’ Boot-Scootin’ dance music, sponsored in part by CenterState Bank.
And to close out the festival, Mr. Fred Partin’s Dragonworks will thrill us with a fantastic fireworks display at 8:30 pm in the field behind the ball park! It’s always the perfect end to an absolutely perfect day! So dust off yer dancin’ shoes, pull out yer Pirate costumes and be sure to join us again this year! Aaarrrrg, Matey! See you there!
