Many would call it the event of the year for the city of Germantown. And if you don’t believe that the 47th annual Germantown Festival is that big of a deal, just ask festival coordinator Melba Fristick.
“I have had a wedding planned around it that I know about. I have had a family reunion planned around it many years. They all come to the festival,” says Fristick.
Festival chairman Howard Giffin says the goal of the weekend is to create a family friendly event that everyone can enjoy. The prices aren’t bad, either.
“Free parking. Shuttle buses are free. It’s free to get into the festival grounds. You can come out here and it doesn’t cost you anything until you start shopping or until you start eating,” Giffin says.
A big focus of the festival is the arts and crafts. Close to 400 vendors will be offering everything from jewelry and metal art to hunting equipment and shirts for Mid-South shopaholics.
“We have twelve states involved with this right now. That was my last count. But a lot of it is local. People will come out and only set up at this one event,” Fristick says.
And of course, there’s the Running of the Weenies, which raises money for the Germantown Animal Shelter. The event is as fun as it us unpredictable.
“You don’t know where these dogs are going to go,” says Giffin. “Some of them go up into the stands. Some of them go straight down to the owner that’s down at the other end of the court… you don’t know what they’re going to do.”
All of these elements come together for an event the community really gets behind.
“This is when everybody comes out that might not even be out here twice a year,” says Fristick. “We want to show them the best that Germantown has to offer.”
Organizers say that there will be new rides for the kids at this year’s festival. The British Auto Club will also be there on Sunday after a multi-year absence.
The Germantown Festival will run Saturday, September 8th from 9:30 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. and Sunday, September 9th from noon to 6:00 p.m. The festival will be at the Germantown Civic Club Complex located at 7745 Poplar Pike.
