Sep. 19—RUSHVILLE — The annual Willkie Days celebration was the centerpiece of a weekend of activities and entertainment in Rushville.

Willkie Days kicked off Friday with a sold-out catered dinner on one of Rush County's covered bridges.

Saturday began with the annual Willkie Day Parade which organized near the high school gym and stepped off at 10 a.m. headed south down Main Street to the downtown festival site. This year's Grand Marshal was Jim Ephlin, longtime owner of The Rushville Bowl.

The day included a large turn-out for the 5-in-50 Covered Bridge Bike Ride, which helped lead off the parade and visited Rush County's covered bridges as it meandered through the countryside.

After the parade, Main Street was closed downtown so attendees could enjoy the festivities without worrying about traffic.

Following the parade, RushFest took place downtown.

Vendors were set up from Second Street north and along the 100 block of E. Third Street, and downtown merchants were open.

A Kidz Zone in the 100 block of W. Third Street featured a bounce house, obstacle course, inflatable ax throwing, inflatable basketball, barrel train rides, face painting and more. In addition, the Rushville Police Department hosted a dunk tank and police car.

The Farmer's Market area in the 200 block of N. Main Street offered more vendors selling assorted goods.

The Rushville Breakfast Optimist Students Art Show, Rush County Chamber of Commerce Photography Contest entries, and author Mary Wilkinson could all be found in the 201 Building on the northwest corner of Second and Main streets.

At 7 p.m., the last in this year's Live by the Levee series of free concerts got underway at Riverside Park on the south side of town.

Rushville's Tyler Hornback opened the show followed by Pink Droyd, a Pink Floyd tribute band, at 8 p.m. The headliners brought along an impressive laser light show that added to the evening's entertainment value.

The weekend of activities concluded Sunday with the annual SPARC Walk at 2 p.m. SPARC is short for Suicide Prevention Around Rush County, and the walk was held to help raise awareness about suicide and the resources available to those considering self harm or who are having a mental health crisis of some kind.