This post documents my experience on May 28, 2011.
Although Grafton isn’t all that far from where I live, I had never heard about the Grafton Village Firemen’s Festival until a coworker gave me a copy of her local paper.
Being that it was a firemen’s festival (unique) and into its 75th year, I was a little upset with myself on how it got by me all these years!
But rather than beat myself down, Julia and I decided to stop by and check it out at Willow Park, where signs instructed us to park at our own risk. The ground was still saturated with weeks’ worth (if not months’ worth) of rain and trails of mud warned us that it was better to park in the street – which we did.
When we walked onto the grounds, we noticed how much space Willow Park had and how the festival used it. Spread among the grounds were various types of attractions, including…
…a playground…
…various rides…
…corn hole…
…Fishy fish…
…whack-a-car…
…and a row of vendors.
There was even room for a great selection of food….
…from your basic carnival grub…
…and festival concession favorites…
…to a local food truck…
…and a bake sale with homemade candy sushi (kudos for this!).
Plus what’s a festival without a beer garden?
With the Lorain County Emergency Management Agency nearby to keep the beer drinkers in check…
…we concentrated on the Wellington Fire Department’s setup…
…which lured me in with their electronic pooch Patches.
The Wellington FD was also kind enough to show me some of Patches’ functions.
The Grafton firemen, on the other hand, were busy working other aspects of the festival…
…which included the caller…
…for the Bingo games.
With a pair of ATM machines readily available…
…there was nothing to prevent you from a friendly game (or two) of Bingo.
I even considered a quick game, myself, when I realized….
…that Julia had wandered off to a nearby table.
As it turns out, she is fascinated with local cookbooks…
…so she was more than happy to pick up a piece of Grafton culture.