MOUNT VERNON – The Johnny Appleseed Apple Festival returns to Downtown Mount Vernon for its third year.
Sponsored by The Peoples Bank of Gambier, the event will take place Friday, Oct. 6, from 5 to 8 pm. East Ohio Avenue between South Main and South Gay will be bustling with vendors, food trucks, fall activities and more.
The Open Road Renewables stage, located at the west end of the Central Ohio Technical Center parking lot, will feature performances by Wiggin Street and Pleasant Street Elementary School students at 5:15 p.m., a historic reenactment of John “Johnny Appleseed” Chapman portrayed by Jim Stoner of the Mount Vernon Players at 5:50 p.m., and the return of the apple pie eating contest at 6:15 p.m.
Additional music and entertainment will be provided by Ski-High Productions with live music starting at 7:30 p.m. at Happy Street Brü Werks.
Back by popular demand is the Johnny Appleseed Apple Festival Apple Pie Eating Contest. Individuals ages 16 and older are welcome to register to see who will be the fastest to eat a quarter of an apple pie from Half Baked Cafe & Catering.
Sign-ups will take place at the Experience Mount Vernon Table between 5 to 6 p.m. Space is limited so be sure to sign-up early. The winner will take home a $50 Experience Mount Vernon Downtown e-gift card.
K-12 students are encouraged to brush up on their Johnny Appleseed Trivia because the Downtown Merchants will be hosting a Johnny Appleseed themed trivia shop hop on Oct. 6 from 3:30 to 6:30 p.m.
To participate, visit one of the participating shops to pick-up a trivia sheet, then visit at least five shops to get the correct answers to the trivia questions.
There will be a shop hop taking place for adults as well. Pick-up your shop hop entry form at one of the participating locations and make a purchase at at least four participating shops to be entered in the drawing.
Completed forms for both the kids trivia and shop hop event will be accepted until 7:00pm at the Experience Mount Vernon table at the Johnny Appleseed Festival. Both drawings will take place at 7:15 p.m.
More information will be available on Facebook at Experience Mount Vernon.
There will be 15 different vendors to the festival this year. Each vendor will have a table along East Ohio Avenue and many will be selling their handmade apple-themed and fall items.
Vendors include: The Kokosing Valley Model Train Club; Community Roots; Moody Hives Honey; ASE Woodworking; The Crazy Crafty Chicks; The Blessed Life; Glen Hill Orchards; SimplyCharming; Knox Educational Service Center; Sycamore Designs; Creations 2 Dye 4 face painting; Dancing Bee Market & Studio; The Moonlit Soul; Miller’s Farm Market; and Baker’s IGA.
Come hungry because the Knox Pages Food Truck Trail will be located in the MTVarts parking lot on South Gay Street and will include delicious items for all tastebuds.
Each food truck will have a special apple-themed food item so be sure to try them all.
In addition to stage performances, there will be demonstrations and activities all over the festival grounds.
The Brown Family Environmental Center will be on site giving antique apple cider press demonstrations, Lashley Training Center will be on site with some fall-themed strength activities and competitions, and the MTVarts Warehouse will be open to meet the staff and learn about everything offered by MTVarts.
With food, fun, and entertainment, the 3rd annual Johnny Appleseed Apple Festival is sure to be bigger than ever.
East Ohio Avenue will be closed to all parked and traffic between Main and Gay starting at 3 p.m. on Oct. 6 and will reopen around 8:30 p.m.
To volunteer at the Johnny Appleseed Apple Festival email director@experiencemv.org to sign-up for a shift.
For more information on the festival, events coming to downtown, or to learn more about Experience Mount Vernon, head to www.experiencemv.org.