For thirteen years, the Town of Catawba has held a special event that honors local Veterans in Catawba County and surrounding communities. This year is no exception. The 14th Annual Veterans Festival and Parade will be held on November 10th, 2018 in the Town of Catawba. Festivities begin at 10am with the parade beginning at 2pm.
The Veterans Festival has always been an exciting time in town. It's a fun-filled day with lots of activities for families to enjoy. This year, as you enter the town, the first thing you will see will be the top of the Sky Candy Balloons, a hot air balloon. Pilot Sean Richardson will be set up beside the Catawba Fire Department and will be offering tethered hot air balloon rides, weather permitting. The cost of rides will be $5 for children (10 and under) and $10 for adults. Further in town, you'll find the Kids Zone, sponsored this year by Century Furniture. There will be train rides, obstacle courses and bouncy houses. In addition, Buffalo Beals will be in attendance with their petting zoo, and the Hickory Crawdads will have their bounce house and fastpitch game set up. Everything in the Kids Zone is free to children and their families. While the children play, Century Furniture will be taking applications for any of the 50+ job openings they have right now, ranging from Upholsterers and Sewers to Truck Drivers and Customer Service positions.
On Main Street, vendors will span from one end to the other, with funnel cakes, beef jerky, handmade goods, and more! In addition, many of our local churches will be set up selling some of the best items you don’t want to miss, from Port-A-Pit chicken to the most famous pumpkin rolls in this part of the county. Carla Young with Affordable Face Painting One will offer her services and many of the local businesses will be open and eager for you to stop in and visit! There will be entertainment throughout the day on Center stage with performances by DJ Darin Henley and local bands and performers. The Parade itself, scheduled to begin at 2pm, will be led by the Grand Marshalls, who are local World War II Veterans. In the lineup for the parade are four local high school bands, including St. Stephens, Fred T. Foard, Bunker Hill and Bandy’s High Schools, along with the JROTC from local high schools, cheerleading teams, antique tractors, fire trucks, and much more! A special Concert On The Lawn will take place after the parade with Doesn’t Madder Band performing on the grass lot in the middle of town.
One of the best things about visiting an event like this is the opportunity to slow down and enjoy the personality and the life of the town itself. It's a chance to engage with the vendors, hear their stories, and enjoy the day in a small town that prides itself on being just that: a small town with family ties that span generations, the warmth of neighbors greeting neighbors that are truly more like family, and the history that proves to be a gem in itself.
If you wander off the beaten path through the streets in town, you will come across the oldest brick building in Catawba, the Dr. Q. M. Little House. The building is a museum which opened to the general public in 2003 and has as much character outside as it does history inside. Most people don’t know it, but Catawba is actually one of the oldest towns between Salisbury and Asheville, and it was chosen to be a railroad station where trains frequented even before the War between the States.
One of the newer additions, the Veterans Garden of Honor, is just across the street, and is a beautiful recognition for local veterans in our county, both living and deceased. The committee that has worked so hard to create this tribute is actually in the process of adding a third phase, which will honor local first responders in the county and will be partially designed by local high school students. This garden will be the setting for Catawba's Veterans Day Service, scheduled for the day after the festival, on November 11th at 5pm, following which luminary candles will be lit in honor and remembrance of our Veterans.
So make plans to come out to the Town of Catawba to celebrate our Veterans and the opportunities we have because of their dedication and service. Bringing my daughter to this event is more than just about a day of fun and excitement, but also about teaching her our history and honoring those who put their lives on the line, so that we could enjoy this small town living at its finest.
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Other local events for Veterans Day 2018:
- Thank a Veteran (Lenoir) Nov 7th at 4pm
- Veterans Day Ceremony (Granite Falls) Nov 9th at 10am
- Flag Retirement Ceremony (Newton) Nov 9th at 6pm
- Military Timeline (Statesville) Nov 10th 9am-5pm
- Veterans Memorial Celebration (Sawmills) Nov 10th at 10:30am
- Veterans Day Parade (Lincolnton) Nov 10th at 11am
- Military Timeline (Statesville) Nov 11th 10am-3pm
- Veterans Day Service (Claremont) Nov 12th at 11am
- Veterans Day Memorial Service (Lenoir) Nov 12th at 11am
