Festival makes county special

By Staff
Jonathan Willis
For years I have been going to the Watermelon Festival each August.
It was just something that I knew I would be doing when the time rolled around.
I remember the first time I went I was in about the fourth grade. At that time the festival lasted from about 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. on a Saturday. I spent the day down there with a friend whose dad was in the Jaycees in Russellville.
It's funny how you remember little details about things like that. One of the things I remember is us both walking around all day wearing these goofy Bart Simpson shirts and buying Batman pins from what was then the Tomato House.
The festival has certainly grown since those days.
In recent years I have spent the weekend of the Watermelon Festival standing over a hot cooker or grill selling food for my parents concession business. It was tough to really enjoy the festival those days.
Now, I look at it altogether differently.
The Watermelon Festival is something this county can be proud of.
For one weekend each year we are the place that others want to go to. It helps the entire county.
This year I have gotten to see just how hard the Chamber of Commerce director and board members work to make such an event possible.
If they do not receive the thanks they deserve, it is certainly a shame. They are all to be commended for what they do.
Previous chamber director Lisa Stockton did a wonderful job building the festival into what it has become. I don't know if anyone else could have done that.
But it certainly doesn't seem like the festival will miss a beat with Cheryl Bradford leading the charge. She has stepped into some big shoes and is wearing them well.
The job of chamber director is a difficult one that most times goes unnoticed.
As a lifelong county resident I for one am pleased to have the leadership and festival that we have.