“We invite people to come out and have a good time. It is difficult for me to find a way to sell it because it sold itself before I even knew of it,” Bill House, 2018 festival president, said of the event.
A local lawyer and resident of Tipp City for five years, House recalled how his father would travel from their home in West Alexandria to Tipp City over the years to participate in the Saturday morning Run for the Mums.
The run is celebrating its 40th year. The festival this year also is recognizing Monroe Township, which is observing its bicentennial in 2018.
All of those milestones helped lead to the festival’s theme “60 Years in the Books.”
“I like the play on words and I am also an avid reader,” House said.
The festival kicks off Friday night with the annual car show downtown. Serving as the Saturday morning parade grand marshal will be lifelong city resident Betty Eickhoff. The 98-year-old is known as a town historian.
This year’s festival queen is Emily Ringo, a Tippecanoe High School student. The Little Mr. and Miss Mum will be selected Saturday afternoon on the main stage at the park.
The Run for the Mums is one of the festival’s enduring events. Kathy Taylor, director of the nonprofit Tipp Monroe Community Services, has been involved in the organization, and the run, for many years.
“It has been fun watching it grow and change over the years,” Taylor said, noting, for example, the past need to keep track of runners by paper and today’s electronic race systems.
Registration will be held race day on Saturday beginning at 6:30 a.m. The race starts at 8 a.m.
Race proceeds benefit youth programs of Tipp Monroe Community Services. For more information, call 937-667-8631 or visit tmcomservicesorg.
For more information on the festival, visit its website at www.tippcitymumfestival.org.
Contact this contributing writer at nancykburr@aol.com
What: 60th Tipp City Mum Festival
When: Sept. 28- 30
Where: Downtown Sept. 27, Tipp City Park, Sept. 28 & 29
Admission: Free
More information: www.tippcitymumfestival.org
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