Celebrate Dundee! festival takes place Aug. 13; larger event planned for this year

DUNDEE – Last summer, the Dundee Downtown Development Authority and Heart of Dundee wanted to offer a break from the COVID-19 pandemic.

So they hosted the first Celebrate Dundee event.

“We first began in July, 2021, as a way to allow families and residents from all around to get out of the house and enjoy some free local fun,” Kristina Frank, Dundee DDA board member and one of the event organizers, said. “There were still a lot of events and businesses shut down at that time due to COVID, and we wanted a safe way for people to come out and enjoy a day of fun.”

The organizers got more than they expected.

“We were uncertain how many would come out. Last year beat our expectations,” Frank said. “The crowd was unbelievable, and the support our community gave was amazing.”

The second-annual Celebrate Dundee will be larger than the first and will take place from 10 a.m. to 11 p.m. Aug. 13 at a new location, Wolverine Park. Admission is free. The public is welcome.

“Last year we coordinated the event in two months. This year, with a little more time and planning, we were able to grow the event and add more to enjoy,” Frank said. "We hope to have an even bigger attendance. We are excited to bring it back."

New this year are a vendor show and bounce houses. Other activities include fireworks, food trucks, beer tent, face painting, costumed characters, live music and dance routines and more.

Fireworks will begin at dusk at a new location.

“Although we loved having the fireworks right off the river last year, because of the size we’ve grown to, we had to move the location, and the fireworks will go off the same spot as the Mayfly Festival’s fireworks,” Frank said.

A beer tent will be open from 5 to 10:30 p.m.; tickets will be sold at the tent.

34 vendors will sell homemade crafts, wood projects, homemade food items, jewelry and more from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.

“We also have our local businesses uptown we encourage all to stop into, including Twigs & Twine, TC Antiques, The Paper Moon Shoppe, Cool Beanz Antique Shop & more,” Frank said.

Two bands will perform.

Last Exit Band will play from 5 to 7:30 p.m. Temperance Tonic will play from 8 to 11 p.m.

Several children’s events will be offered, including face painting.

A second face painter has been added this year. Both are Dundee High School students who are volunteering.

“Last year we had one face painter on hand. Well, she was very, very busy,” Frank said. “We thought having two this year will help. They do a fantastic job, and the kids loved it.”

Children also can meet costumed characters. Captain America will appear from noon to 1 p.m. Princess Belle will appear from 2 to 3 p.m.

Peg Harris Dance Studio will be featured from 1 to 2 p.m.

Four bounce houses from Poupard Moonwalks will be set up.

“River of Life Church in Dundee will have lots of different activities for the kids, and the Kiwanis Club of Dundee will be helping with our kids activities too,” Frank said.

Several food trucks will be on-site.

Cilantro of Dundee will sell Mexican food. Sunset Ridge BBQ from Tecumseh is returning to Celebrate Dundee and will sell barbecued foods. Coffee Grind of Dundee will sell hot and cold specialty drinks. Shaved Ice of Monroe will sell shaved ice and lemonade. Fried Oreos, elephant ears, corndogs and other treats will be sold by Mathewson’s.

Downtown Dundee restaurants also will be open, including River's Edge, Tiffany's Pizza, Uncle Lyle's, The Apothecary Kitchen and Cool Beanz.

Organizers hope Celebrate Dundee will become an annual event.

“Our hopes are to continue this event annually on the second Saturday in August,” Frank said. “Eventually we would like to utilize other spaces closer to our downtown location and allow event-goers to visit the downtown area businesses and restaurants.”

The Dundee DDA aims to support local businesses, vendors, restaurants and the community by hosting community events for the public. Heart of Dundee was started to promote Downtown Dundee and celebrate community, history and small-town values, the organization said.

For more information, visit Heart of Dundee on Facebook

This article originally appeared on The Monroe News: Second annual Celebrate Dundee! festival slated for Aug. 13