America 250 Festival to take over Shadyside on Saturday
Trending
SHADYSIDE -- The village of Shadyside is gearing up to host its America 250 festival on Saturday.
The festivities kick off at 4 p.m. with a free parade that will take place on the village's historic loop. Lineup for the parade begins at 3 p.m. by Shadyside High School.
The parade will start near DeFelice Pizza and end near Coffee Central.
"We are shutting our loop down, as we somewhat do for the Loop Festival. It's a similar setup, but we want everybody to come in their red, white and blue anything and wave," Shadyside America 250 committee Chairperson Melanie Haswell said.
Following the parade, an opening ceremony featuring the Pledge of Allegiance and national anthem will take place. After the ceremony, live music and a DJ will provide entertainment, with 12 food trucks and refreshment vendors providing food and drinks. Several area vendors also will be in attendance.
The festival will feature a hot dog eating contest sponsored by Central Grille owner Adam Lucci.
"I think the thing I'm excited about most is our hot dog eating contest. We have a really nice belt that has a hot dog champion on the front, and it will be whoever can eat five hot dogs within 10 minutes the quickest to swallow and hopefully don't choke," Haswell said.
She added that although the festival is free, a $10 wristband can be purchased that allows unlimited access to all games and inflatables.
"We're not trying to rip people off with this, it's not a money-making activity, but the wristbands will only be $10 and it includes all of the games, axe throwing, dunk tank, bounce houses and everything as much as they want the whole time the festival is open," Haswell said.
She added that the festival would not be possible without the help of the committee.
"The process has been kind of exhausting, but we're almost there. I have had a committee that has been a big help to me," Haswell said. "I have a committee of about 10 people that have been awesome. We've actually been meeting a couple times a month now. It's been once a week this last month, but we're really looking forward to it. I think the weather looks cooperative, fingers crossed, and we're just ready to have a good time celebrating America 250."
The festival also will have a patriotic pup competition sponsored by Suds and Snouts, a local dog grooming business.
"The dogs will walk up on the stage one at a time, we will have judges to judge them, and whoever's dog is dressed up the best in red, white and blue will win," Haswell said.
She added that the Hendershot Building next to the Tiger Pub will be used as a cooling station for attendees of all ages. The station will provide drinking water and activities for children, such as coloring sheets.