We're planning a party!

It might only be the end of May, but the Chamber has already begun planning for the 2019 Harvest Festival in September. Actually, we started planning last October because these things don't happen over night. And boy do we have a packed weekend in store.

For the past three years, Gothenburg has been the host city for the Nebraska Hand Cornhusking Contest. That is a great event that celebrates our agricultural heritage and helps keep a tiny piece of that history alive. Since Cornhusking involved food vendors and craft vendors and a whole heck of a lot of volunteers organized by the Chamber's ag committee, it didn't seem feasible to duplicate activities in town. So events that residents remember in Ehmen Park were moved to the farm and the park sat relatively silent.

Well guess what ...

Gothenburg's good fortune to host this year's Nebraska AND National Hand Cornhusking Contests is a boon for all! Because the national contest involves nine states and we have to accommodate their state contest schedules, the national corn picking competition has to be in October. That means Cornhusking will break away from Harvest Festival this year.

That's correct. Harvest Festival will be Sept. 19-22 and Cornhusking is Oct. 19-20.  That provides Gothenburg the opportunity to whoop it up two months in a row! It also lets us bring some activities back into town, specifically back into Ehemn Park. We still have to get city approval for use of public spaces, so I can't really spill all the beans yet. Just know we're working on a full weekend of activities and we hope everyone will jump on board with support.

Maybe you'll be asked to sponsor or donate. Maybe you have ideas for events you'd like to see. The only way to make these things work is with folks willing to dive in and do it. Our special events committee is made up of first-time festival folks who have already put in many hours of work. They are over-the-top excited to bring a fun weekend to Gothenburg. Keep watching for details ...

And thanks in advance for the support and participation that will make Harvest Festival 2019 the best one yet!