Whether it was the baby races in Crystal City, a cornhole tournament in Herculaneum or a model train display in Festus, people flocked to Twin City Days activities last weekend, organizers reported.
The annual event, which mainly occurred Sept. 10-12, offered more than 50 different things to do or experience, said Mary Zebrowski, executive director of the Twin City Area Chamber of Commerce, which sponsors Twin City Days.
“There were thousands of people,” Zebrowski said. “Main Street-Bailey Road on Saturday was packed for the vendors and the car show. People turned out for everything.”
She said this included outdoor activities scheduled for the morning of Sept. 10 at Larry G. Crites Memorial Park, when rain threatened and actually fell at times during the scheduled events such as the Mayors Challenge, bingo and live music.
“I expected smaller crowds (at the Crites Park activities) because of the rain, but people came out,” she said.
Gary and Paula House of Hillsboro and Priscilla Portell of Festus prepare for bingo at the Seniors in the Park event.
The Sept. 10 activities at the park also included Twin City Days Free Community Breakfast and Adult Big Wheel Tricycle Obstacle Course Race between Festus and Crystal City that served as this year’s Mayors Challenge. Crystal City won.
As the bingo was about to start, Sandy McKinney, 88, of Hillsboro said she has not been successful at the game but enjoys competing at it.
“I come to the bingo every year,” she said. “I never win. I play at (Leader) Senior Expos. I haven’t won there either. But this is my lucky day.”
However, when contacted the next day, she reported she did not achieve a bingo victory.
“I still didn’t win,” she said. “I came close. It’s fun, anyway.”
Attendees of the Main Street Market on Sept. 12 had 110 vendor booths to visit on Festus Main Street-Crystal City Bailey Road, plus they could see the Classic Car Show.
Sisters, from left, Madalyn Gray, 12, and Raelyn Gray, 13, of Festus look at rings on Festus Main Street during the Main Street Market.
“I haven’t been to Twin City Days in a while,” said Karen Vaughn, 65, of Festus. “I love it.”
Another visitor, Cody Conner, 34, of Bonne Terre said he looks forward to Twin City Days.
“I come to this every year,” he said. “I like the car show.”
Craig Eifert, 48, of Crystal City said his family was enjoying Twin City Days.
“We come every year,” Eifert said. “We come to a lot of the activities. We like this (Main Street Market) and the car show.”
Michelle Hohmeier, owner of Tree of Life Art Gallery, Fine Antiques & Artfully Renewed Furniture in Festus, said she was having a busy day as fairgoers kept popping into her store.
“I’ve had a lot of people,” she said. “It’s been a very good day so far.”
Bella Bess, operating a booth in front of the Sage and Saddle Boutique in Festus, said she had spoken to many people participating in the Main Street Market.
“This is our first time at Twin City Days,” she said. “We’ve had a lot of people stopping by.”
Zebrowski said she was encouraged by reports she received from all the various activities.
“The new events, I heard, were well-attended,” she said. “The barbershop chorus (Spirit of St. Louis Barbershop Chorus that performed at the Main Street Market) was well-received. The Lego Build-A-Person (at the Compass Truman Health Center) was another new event that went well. The Zumba Glow in the Dark (Sept. 11 at Crystal City Park) was another successful event.
“We’re very happy.”
-- Kevin Carbery
Twin City Days serves ample helpings of food, fun
By Kate Bequette
Food and fun were prominently featured on the menu for Twin City Days.
The annual festival kicked off with a free community breakfast on Sept. 10 at the Ballpark Pavilion at Larry G. Crites Memorial Park in Festus.
The breakfast was provided by area establishments, including McDonald’s, Richard’s Produce, Walmart and more.
Mary Zebrowski, executive director of the Twin City Area Chamber of Commerce, said the pavilion was packed with nearly 100 people showing up for breakfast despite some dreary weather,
“For the very first event of this year’s Twin City Days, I was impressed with the turnout,” she said. “We had more (people) in attendance than last year, and with the rain, I didn’t expect that at all.”
Denise LaRue, of Festus said she enjoyed the community aspect of the breakfast and encouraged others to attend next time.
“This is my second year attending Twin City Days as we moved to the area to be closer to family. I look forward to the events because of all the activities. There is a lot to look forward to,” LaRue said.
She was joined by her friend Joan Radin of the Festus area. Radin said she came to the breakfast to show her support of the Festus and Crystal City communities.
“It is an easy way to support our cities. Plus, it is always nice to see old friends and meet new people,” she said.
After breakfast, a friendly battle ensued in the Adult Big Wheel Tricycle Obstacle Course Race, which pitted Crystal City and Festus city officials and employees against each other.
Strategies and tricycle-riding abilities were put to the test, but Crystal City was victorious and left the race with bragging rights and big smiles.
“The race was so much fun to watch; I think everyone who took part in the Big Wheel race really enjoyed themselves too,” Zebrowski said.
Crystal City won the Adult Big Wheel Tricycle Obstacle Course Race against the city of Festus. The racing members were Eddie Robinson, Dylan Moon, Dustin Moon, Mayor Mike Osher and Corey Nengel.
Betty Baker of Festus said the friendliness of those attending the festival and the range of activities are her favorite parts of Twin City Days. She said she has been attending for the past five years.
“I enjoy the fellowship,” she said. “Everyone is always very nice and helpful. I usually stay long enough for the bingo, and this time, I’m staying for the chair yoga.”
Chair yoga, which was a new event this year, was led by Maureen Menendez, a YMCA yoga instructor.
“Chair yoga, it’s great for mobility and balance,” said Menendez of Festus. “I feel that it supports people in their activities, whether it’s other athletic endeavors or your daily tasks.”
Judy Hiller-Leitterman of De Soto said the new yoga class was fun, easy and a way to stay relaxed.
“I loved the chair yoga,” she said. “It was super easy to follow, and it really felt like it made a difference. The instructor was great too.”
On Sept. 12, Twin City Days activities continued the theme of fun activities, including some with food as the centerpiece.
Dancers burned up the dance floor during beginner line dancing lessons at Tanglefoot Dance Hall on Main Street.
Amanda Bley of Bloomsdale, a line dance instructor who has taught for two years and danced for more than 25 years, said she has been with Tanglefoot Dance Hall since its opening earlier this year.
“I love the owners and staff,” Bley said. “It is a new business but already has such a strong community behind it. Everyone here is amazing and super welcoming.”
She said the new event was meant to get people in the door and show attendees what the dance hall is all about.
“It is more than just a bar scene,” Bley said. “This place has such a great environment. There is no judgment whatsoever. Come as you are and join the dance family.”
Mary and Al Cooper of Blackwell took part in the line dancing lessons after hearing about the new event.
“I used to teach dancing for about 10 years,” Mary Cooper said. “Amanda is an excellent instructor. Twin City Days has so much to offer: different vendors, car shows, markets. There really is so much to do.”
Laura Ingram of House Springs said it was her first time visiting Twin City Days, but she is no stranger to the dance hall. Ingram said she has been attending lessons on Tuesdays and will visit occasionally on Friday and Saturday nights.
“I have taken lessons from Amanda before, and she is such a wonderful instructor,” Ingram said. “She takes the time to make sure you understand and helps if you have any questions. She is very thorough with what she does.
“For those who might be interested in trying line dancing, it will bring you into a new atmosphere with a new group of individuals,” she said. “Everybody helps everybody on the dance floor. Start with a beginner class and work your way up; we want you to feel included.”
While dancers were burning calories on the dance floor, contestants in another venue were adding them.
Across town at The Pasta House Co., 13 contestants waited eagerly to fill their stomachs at the 11th annual Toasted Ravioli Eating Contest. Contestants competed to see how many toasted raviolis a person could chow down in five minutes.
Repeating as champion was Don Jeffries of Hillsboro. Jeffries, who is the curriculum director at Grandview R-2 School District, attended with his wife, Becky, and dominated the competition, eating 27 toasted raviolis.
“I am so excited to have won again this year,” he said. “It was a tough contest to say the least. The key is really taking smaller, quick bites; that is what I’ve learned in my two years participating.
“My hype person is my daughter, Caroline. She helped me plan out strategies on how I could win,” Jeffries said. “For every potluck at school, I always request toasted ravioli, the meal of which I am king. As an educator, on lunch breaks you learn to eat quickly.”
Don Jeffries of Hillsboro with his first-place trophy after eating 27 toasted ravioli five minutes.
While they didn’t prevail in the ravioli-eating contest, last-minute entrants Erin Mercer, Tera Grass and Sarah Reece, all of Festus, said they had fun at the contest.
“We had a ball all day,” Mercer said. “Twin City Days has incredible food and always a great crowd. If we didn’t hit the food trucks before coming to the (ravioli-eating) contest, we might have had a better chance.”
Dozens of people play games during Twin City Days event
By Sarah Lerch
Twin City Days offered fun games and activities for people of all ages.
Some of the youngest contestants competed in Pony Bird’s “Baby Crawling Contest” on Sept. 12 in Crystal City Park.
Victoria Tegg of De Soto said she brought her 7-month-old to compete because he crawls pretty quickly. She said events like the crawling contest are important so younger kids can participate in the community event.
Carolyn Holmes, 10 months, of Festus leads the pack during the baby crawling contest with Eloise Cagle, 10 months, of Festus close behind.
Nicole Cagle of Festus agreed, saying she had seen the crawling contest on the Twin City Days website and thought the event would be fun to try with her daughter Eloise, who has been crawling for around four months.
“I think (the event) is family-friendly and going out with all the kids and actually having something to do with the kids,” she said.
Kelsey Holmes said she was excited to see all of the kids, including her 10-month-old daughter Caroline, participate in the contest.
Crystal City Park also offered fun events for older kids, with the Festus Crystal City Kiwanis Club holding the “Kids’ Games and Money Pit.”
Kids could play a variety of mini games, such as bowling and soccer. As they participated, the kids collected stickers that earned them admission to a money pit money pit where coins had been thrown into the sand. The kids were given a few minutes to collect as many coins as they could find.
Some parents had a strategy for participating in the events that interested them.
“I kind of wrote out a plan of like some different things,” said Amanda Fonner, of Festus, who brought her three children, Harrison, 9, Lincoln, 7 and Charlotte, 5. “They definitely wanted to come play the games; they’re excited for the free ice cream and so excited for the inflatables.”
Harrison said he was also looking forward to going to the new Lego Build a Person Event at Compass Health Network in Crystal City.
“It’s pretty fun out here,” he said.
The variety of games and activities were a hit with parents.
Kassi Abrams, of Festus brought her daughter Ryleigh to the Kids’ Games and Money Pit.
“We just wanted to see what the city’s putting on,” Abrams said. “And we love our community, so just wanted to come out and support it.”
Ryleigh agreed.
“I love that you get to go to every spot in here,” she said. “And you get to fill out a sheet and get prizes.”
Over at the Festus Library, the age of the competitors was decidedly older.
Adults could participate in adult Big Wheel tricycle races in which two to four people would line up on the tricycles. They would then ride the tricycles around cones and come back to the finish line. Winners of the races could receive coupons for local restaurants.
Luke Adams, of Festus said he came upon the tricycle races while walking around Main Street.
“I was walking around buying antiques and drinks, and now I get to kind of work off the calories that I drank by spinning around this a couple of times for free,” he said.
Adams said his favorite part about the race was the adrenaline rush he would get when turning and drifting with the tricycle.
Garrett Haney, of Festus said he had a blast in the tricycle races. He said his favorite part was almost drifting into Adams during the race.
“I try to get out here just about every year,” Haney said. “I’ve been living in town my entire life… I’m just glad to be out here.”
