Main Attraction
The 38th Butler Fall Festival is adding meals and deals to its weekend of fun this year.
Sheri Hershberger, festival president, said there will be more food vendors because “everybody loves food.”
However, an even bigger addition to the festivities is the Butler Fall Crawl.
Friday Butler Fall Crawl
The Butler Fall Crawl will give residents a sampling of downtown Butler businesses — there are 25 participating.
Ticket holders can go from business to business from 6 to 9 p.m. Friday enjoying discounts on services, raffles and free samples.
“We're drawing people into our downtown to partake in what our downtown has to offer, and at the same time we're raising funds for the festival,” Hershberger said.
The goal of the tickets, she said, is to get people deals and drum up business.
“We don't want people to miss out,” she said.
Businesses that are participating include Butler Brew Works, The Brick House, Element Cafe and Shelly's Main Street Grille.
On Saturday, the day of the festival, the tickets can be entered for a black-and-gold, sports-themed gift basket valued at more than $1,000.
Hershberger said that people can enter the drawing without participating in the fall crawl.
Fall crawl tickets, which are $10, will be sold at Sam's Club in Butler Township and at all 25 participating businesses.
Saturday Fall festival
The crawl will be limited to the city's sidewalks, while the festival, which is from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m., will close downtown's Main Street.
The food will range from pizza and hot dogs to Polish food, including halupki, which is stuffed cabbage, and haluski, which is cabbage and noodles.
There also will be desserts, such as funnel cakes.
For children, there will be an all-new kids zone filled with games and activities. The barrel train also will be back.
“It's going to take them around the kids zone, so the great thing about that is they're going to see all the games and things,” Hershberger said.
There will be returning staples of the festival. Butler Street Machines will run the car cruise, which will feature classic cars displayed from Penn Street to North Street.There also will be crafts, including works that are made out of wood with a chain saw.Master Randall Connell of the ATA Taekwondo Center will be back to hold a demonstration.Music will be provided by Jay Vonada's Organ Trio East, a jazz group; Washboard Tony and Son, which is described as “folk music with a twist”; and even a disc jockey.Hershberger is hoping for positive things from the festival.“Our expectation is to bring business to the downtown so that people can experience the downtown, and know what shops we have, what they can get in there,” she said. “And then additionally for the people of Butler to enjoy a street festival.”For more information about the festival or fall crawl, go to www.butlerfallfestival.com.
