Many festivals and gatherings have been themed after the beauty of flowers. If you are a glad lover and looking for a gladiolus festival to enjoy, you may want to attend the annual Momence Gladiolus Festival. It is a long lived tradition in the small community of Momence - this year is the 71st year the festival will be held. These days the festival typically runs for 5 days and has music, dances, antique cars, carnival rides and more. The dates for the 2008 Momence Gladiolus Festival are August 6th to the 10th, 2008, and is run by the local Momence Gladiolus Festival Committee.
Momence, where the annual gladiolus festival takes place, is a town in the Kankakee County in Illinois and although Momence is a fairly small town of slightly over three thousand inhabitants it has a rich historical inheritance. What started out as a trading post for furs, connecting the frontier with both Chicago, which back then was known as Fort Dearbom, and Vincennes in Indiana Momence became the sprawling little town it is today, connected to the Kankakee river. With buildings over 200 years old, Momence is a sight to behold especially when the annual gladiolus festival is in bloom so there are certainly many reasons to pay the little town a visit.
The Momence gladiolus festival dates all the way back to 1938 when the first gladiolus festival was held. A year after that first festival, the association that plans and arranges the annual celebration was formed, and every year since then has the Momence Gladiolus Festival been a smash hit. Still today the committee of the association is planning to make the next years Momence gladiolus festival even better than last years and chances are that they will succeed, but only those who will attend will find out if it is the true.
Although the Momence Gladiolus Festival is small it is full of activites that take place over several days. During the first day of the gladiolus festival, the Queen and Princess of the celebration is crowned with a lot of entertainment, speeches and jolly fun. The other days are then all about the community with parades, games, exhibitions and activities both for the youngest and the oldest. The carnival will also show up in town with rides and exciting entertainments for just a small fee, well worth the price.
In the latter years of the festival, with a greater focus on eating healthier and exercising more, the gladiolus festival has hosted an annual run with one track that is five kilometres long and another that is ten kilometres long. Those participating run at their own pace since it does not have to be a competition for the glory but can also be a possibility to exercise just for the pure fun of it.
You can view more information about the Momence Galdiolus Festival online at their website, http://www.gladfest.com.
