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	The Ypsilanti Courier A Heritage Newspaper Weekly Publication

Hello heritage!

Festival celebrates 29th year

By Tom Perkins, Special Writer

PUBLISHED: August 23, 2007

Photo by Tom Perkins Rubber ducks are dumped off the Cross Street bridge into the Huron River for the rubber ducky race on Sunday

Before moving here four years ago, April Mason couldn't pronounce the name "Ypsilanti" correctly, but she now can't imagine living anywhere else.

She lists the Heritage Festival, one of the city's great sources of community pride, as part of the reason she loves her new hometown.

"Few places can pull off an event like this," she explained. "There's something for everyone and it really says a lot about the people who live here."

The festival filled Downtown Ypsilanti, Depot Town, Riverside Park and Frog Island Park with laughter, music and excitement Friday through Sunday.

This year's event offered amusement park rides for the first time, providing more entertainment for children. Back was the rock wall and historical encampment along the river, giving families the opportunity to see Native American dances and get a taste of pioneer life.

Sunday afternoon rains couldn't keep the crowds away for the rubber duck race starting at the Cross Street bridge and floating to the deck toward Michigan Ave. The winning duck's owner will float around the Caribbean as the winner of a seven-day cruise awarded for a first place finish.

A diverse line up of acts including folk singer Jill Jack and the Ypsilanti Community Choir in Riverside Park stage and a gambling tent provided entertainment for adults.

Lining the paths winding through the park and down Cross Street were over 150 vendors with offerings from local businesses and artists along with information from local civic groups and nonprofits.

Mason said her family had fun the whole time, but her daughter, Macy, 7, particularly liked the petting zoo, and her son, Zach, 4, couldn't get enough of the rides.

"He was not a happy guy when we told him it was time to leave," Mason laughed.

Lynda Hummel, the festival's director, described the festival as outstanding.

"We had record crowds Friday and Saturday," she said. "It was part because of the weather but also because of some of the new offerings we had like the Great Train Race, but probably most prominent was the Children's' Village."

Tom Perkins is a freelance writer for the View/Courier. He can be reached at trperkins@gmail.com.

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