Trending
Whether you live in the Northern Panhandle of West Virginia -- or just about any part of the Tri-State Area -- the second week in July always has held a special place.
That's when the annual Follansbee Community Days event is held.
The annual festival, which will be celebrating its 30th year, has become one of the region's most-anticipated events, and opens its three-day run Friday.
As always, the event, which will be centered on the parking lot of the Follansbee Community House behind the Bluewave Center along state Route 2, will feature plenty of activities for people of all ages, from craft vendors and local artists to inflatables and other activities for children and, of course food.
Music plays a big part in the weekend, and that gets started Friday, when the Fantasys take the stage at 6:30 p.m. and are followed by Lights Out! (a Four Seasons tribute band) at 8:30 p.m. On Saturday, dance band Pure Gold gets things started at 6:30 p.m. and will be followed by Chris Ruggiero at 8:30 p.m. And, on Sunday, Twice as Nice opens at 5:30 p.m., Jimmy Ross and the Jaggerz follow at 6:30 p.m. with the Motor City All-Stars, a Motown tribute band, taking the stage at 8:30 p.m.
Saturday also will feature the annual parade along Main Street that will begin at 1 p.m. with a shotgun blast from the West Virginia University Mountaineer. Sunday's activities will include the Howdy Verner Memorial Car Show, which will run from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. at Lyle's Auto.
And it all comes to an end around 10 p.m. Sunday with the annual fireworks display -- which festival chair Tom Ludewig promises will be exceptional.
Activities surrounding the weekend began June 19, when the annual kick-off dinner was held at St. Francis Centre. Honorees included Victor Ceglie Jr.; Jim Oliveto; Mary Jo Guidi; John Cox; Frank, Susan, Justin and Brian Slanchik; and Brenda Casey. Ceglie, who had a 40-year career as a firefighter in the Washington, D.C., area, will be the grand marshal of Saturday's parade.
Organizers of the event work hard each year to present a multi-day festival that gives Follansbee a chance to show the many things it has to offer. That's something area residents can see for themselves by attending the annual festival.