CENTERBURG – A festival that attracts visitors from across the Midwest will return to Knox County this weekend, following a one-year pandemic hiatus.
The Heart of Ohio USA Days Festival will run Thursday through Saturday at Centerburg’s Memorial Park. In its 16th year, the festival will feature live music, rides, concessions, a parade and fireworks.
Festival organizer Candy McCracken predicts it will also feature a heavy dose of enthusiasm, from volunteers and attendees alike.
“They’re ready. They want to get out with their kids and do stuff. Just in reading the Facebook comments on our page, the people are thrilled,” McCracken said. “I think it’s gonna be a really good turnout.”
The festival will kick off Thursday at 7 p.m. with the Little Miss Liberty and Uncle Sammy pageant. Families will then be invited to attend a show by Remy and Friends, a Dayton-based entertainment company that specializes in magic, illusions, balloon sculptures, ventriloquism, juggling and more.
This performance will be interactive, McCracken said, as children will be able to come up on-stage and participate. Rides, midway entertainment, food and crafts will be available all night, beginning at 5 p.m.
Friday’s festivities will also begin at 5 p.m. Along with the aforementioned amenities, the beer garden will open at this time. It will be located near the stage, beneath a shading tent, and will be sponsored by Centerburg’s 1834 Midway Tavern.
The Brian Panke Band and 23 Southbound, both Columbus-based country bands, will play at 6 p.m. and 8 p.m., respectively. The Brian Panke Band has performed multiple times at 1834 Midway Tavern, McCracken said, while 23 Southbound has opened for several award-winning bands since its inception in 2013.
Saturday’s festivities will begin at 11 a.m. with the parade, which will proceed from the Centerburg Church of Christ (3830 Columbus Rd.) to the park. This year’s march will be led by the family of Peter Hayden Chapman, a Centerburg native who sacrificed his life for his country.
Chapman, a 1959 Centerburg High School graduate, served as an Air Force pilot during the Vietnam War. He flew supplies overseas to troops during the war and flew fallen soldiers back.
“He was slated to come home” in the spring of 1972, McCracken said. But he never made it.
Chapman, who was 31 years old and single, volunteered one day to complete a mission for a fellow pilot, who was married with a family. As he and his comrades attempted to rescue two American airmen who had been shot down and were hiding behind enemy lines, his Green Jolly helicopter was downed by enemy fire.
All six men on the flight perished that day – April 6, 1972 – although remains were not located until decades later.
Chapman was declared killed in action that year, and his family held a funeral. Then, as remains were located and identified through progressing DNA technology, Chapman’s family was able to have full military funerals in Centerburg and Arlington, Va. in 1997.
Chapman’s legacy still lives on in his hometown. Chapman Memorial Field Airport was named in his honor, and an award is given to a Centerburg High School senior each year who exemplifies the values Chapman stood for.
McCracken, who wrote a book on Centerburg history (which includes a chapter on Chapman), said the decision was easy to honor him at this year’s festival. Chapman was the only resident Centerburg lost during the Vietnam War, but he’d never been formally honored in a community setting.
“He’d never really been honored …,” McCracken said. “We just felt he needed this public thing.”
Three of Chapman’s six sisters survive, and will be on a float during Saturday’s parade, serving as Grand Marshals. They will be accompanied by Chapman’s nephew, retired Air Force Maj. Brad Huffman, whose career in the military was inspired by his uncle.
There will be a short ceremony following the parade, McCracken said, where Chapman’s family members will be given a plaque in his honor. Mayor Gregory Sands is expected to declare June 26, 2021 “Hayden Chapman Day,” and the park’s flag will be lowered to half-staff as the CHS band plays the National Anthem.
The rest of the day will feature live music, food and family-friendly entertainment. The midway will open at noon, and a Frozen-themed princess party will take place from 12:30 p.m. to 4:30 p.m. on the main stage.
The beer garden will open at 1 p.m., and Dean Meadows will be singing with his guitar nearby. A state-sanctioned youth tractor pull will take place at 2 p.m.
Meadows will take the stage at 4 p.m. He’ll be followed by Spinning Jenny, an Ohio-based, all-girl rock band, at 6 p.m. Green 13, a Columbus-based rock and metal cover band, will perform at 8 p.m.
Fireworks will begin at 10 p.m. They will be launched from a new location this year, McCracken said, as the field used in years past is no longer available.
“I’m just hoping and praying that we’re gonna be able to see them OK,” she said.
This field, located across Columbus Road from the park, was also used for parking. When organizers learned it would not be available this year, McCracken said Centerburg Superintendent Mike Hebenthal volunteered to donate the school’s parking lot, as well as buses and drivers, for the occasion.
“This year we’re shuttling from school,” McCracken said.
Those interested in attending the festival on Friday and/or Saturday are encouraged to park at the high school, where school buses will be waiting to transport people to the park (visitors can park at Memorial Park on Thursday night, McCracken said, given the anticipated light turnout).
There are no parking or attendance fees, McCracken said, although ride tickets and other commercial items will be sold on-site.
Masks are encouraged for attendees who are not vaccinated against COVID-19, the festival’s website states, particularly when gathering in congested areas.
In years past, McCracken said visitors have traveled from as far as Chicago to attend the festival. She anticipates similar enthusiasm for this year’s event.
“I’m thrilled and I think the people are thrilled,” McCracken said. “Our board president was leery at first – he didn’t think people would be up for it, and they’d still be scared of COVID – but I’m the opposite. I said, ‘I think we’ll have a great turnout.’”
Click here for more information on this year’s festival.
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