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Western Day 2008 adds veterans tribute, local fundraisers
Friday, August 29, 2008
There will be plenty to see, do and taste for fun-seekers of all ages at the popular Western Day festival Saturday, Sept. 27, in Old Town Lewisville. Headliner for this year’s event is the Eli Young Band, scheduled to perform at 6:30-8 p.m.
Other planned activities at Western Day 2008, designed to showcase Lewisville’s rich history, include a Main Street parade, two festival stages of live music, arts and crafts vendors, gunfight re-enactments, trick ropers, car show, Longhorn cattle drive, Tailwaggers Ranch, baking and grilling contests, Stickhorse Rodeo for kids, and the fourth annual World Tamale Eating Championship.
Western Day activities (including a children’s area, craft vendors, live music, and Western-style re-enactments and demonstrations) will start at 10 a.m. and end with the Eli Young Band concert. Other scheduled performers on the Bud Light Main Stage include Derek Sholl at 2 p.m. and Casey Donahew at 4:30 p.m.
Some festival-goers will get an earlier start to their day, however, with the first Old Town Business Association 5K Fun Run, being held to raise money for American Cancer Society in memory of longtime Lewisville resident Wayne Ferguson. The run will start at 7 a.m. and follow a path through Old Town, ending before the opening Western Day activities. Entry fee is $25 prior to Sept. 1, or $35 thereafter. On-site registration will start at 6 a.m. in Wayne Ferguson Plaza, on the north side of Main Street at Poydras. For information, e-mail funrun@tracyscakes.com.
The popular Lewisville Farmers Market, which runs every Saturday morning from April through November in Old Town, will be held at its usual time in the South Poydras Plaza, across Main Street from its usual location. Farmers Market shoppers arriving before the festival opens at 10 a.m. should enter from the south side, generally near the intersection of Poydras and Elm.
An exhibition Vintage Base Ball game between Lewisville and Farmers Branch will be held from 9:30 to 11:30 a.m. at the Lewisville Rodeo Grounds in Mill Street, just north of College Street. Free shuttles will be available from the festival zone. Vintage Base Ball is played using 19th century rules and equipment. This exhibition will be played under the 1860s rules, with no gloves and underhand pitching. Spectators (commonly called “cranks” or “rooters” during the 1860s) are welcome. For more information about Vintage Base Ball, visit www.vbbtexas.org.
The Old West will come alive for festival-goers at Cowboy Camp, a re-enactment of trail drivers featuring demonstrations and presentations throughout the day in such areas as camp cooking, livestock handling and more. Gunfighters will roam the festival ground, staging battles on Main Street at 11:30 a.m., 1 p.m. and 4:30 p.m..
The World Tamale Eating Championship, an official International Federation of Competitive Eating event, will grant a $1,500 grand prize to the competitor who downs the most Dallas Tortilla & Tamale Factory tamales in 12 minutes. It will start at 1 p.m. on the front steps of Lewisville City Hall. Last year’s event featured a world record of 71 tamales in 12 minutes consumed by two-time champion Tim Janus of New York, currently ranked fourth in the world by IFOCE. Registration is conducted by the IFOCE through its website, www.ifoce.com.
The popular Western Day Parade will begin at 3 p.m. The one-mile parade route runs from Cowen Street east on Main Street to Mill Street, then south to DeLay Middle School. Parade applications are available at www.cityoflewisville.com.
Military members and veterans will be honored, with a special focus on area soldiers who have made the ultimate sacrifice in service to their country, with a display of the Denton Country Fallen Soldiers Memorial Wall. With its theme of “Never Be Forgotten,” this travelling display includes personalized tributes to Denton County service members who have died in combat in Iraq. That list includes two Lewisville residents, Army Private First Class Ryan M. McCauley and Army Major Matthew W. Worrell. Each fallen hero is recognized with an etched granite tile mounted on the wall-like display, built by veterans Monty Slough and Dee Cork. A display of vintage military vehicle also is planned near the city’s permanent Veterans Memorial on the front grounds of City Hall.
Knight Light Charities, featuring members of the local Knights of Columbus, will hold a casino fundraiser through the day inside the Strange Financial Services building at the northwest corner of Main and Mill streets. Games will include blackjack, dice, Texas Hold’em and roulette. No prizes will be awarded. Knight Light Charities works with established social service agencies in Lewisville, Flower Mound, Highland Village and surrounding areas to assist individuals and families in need. For information on the event, e-mail klci@knightlightcharities.org.
Greater Lewisville Kiwanis Club will hold two Stickhorse Rodeo events, each offering genuine Nocona belt buckles to the top three finishers in three age divisions through second-graders. The rodeos will be held at noon and 5 p.m., with registration starting half an hour in advance. Also during the festival, The Home Depot will offer stickhorse making for kids.
The 13th annual Lewisville Morning Rotary Club Car Truck & Cycle Show, open to all years and makes of vehicles, will be staged on Mill and Main streets throughout the day. Registration is 9 to 11 a.m., judging will be 11 a.m.-noon, and trophies will be awarded at 4:30 p.m. in four categories. Entry fee is $20 per vehicle ($10 with a valid student ID), and the first 75 entrants receive a dash plaque and other gifts. Proceeds benefit Christian Community Action, Adopt-a-School, Rotary Foundation, Habitat for Humanity and other community charities. For information, call (972) 436-6258 or visit www.lewisvillemorningrotary.com.
More than a dozen animal rescue and support groups will participate in Tailwaggers Ranch returns, offering a variety of pet-related activities including displays, contests and demonstrations. Participating groups include City of Lewisville Animal Services, Coppell Humane Society, Denton County Petsitters Association, DFW Collie Rescue, DFW Pug Rescue, Gifted Animal Program, Golden Retriever Rescue, Great Dane Rescue, Hickory Creek Animal Services, Hope Humane Society, Humane Society of Flower Mound, Operation Kindness, Southern States Rotweiller Rescue Texas Italian Greyhound Rescue, Texas Rustlers Guinea Pig Rescue and Texas Tailwaggers.
Old Town Preservation Society will raise money for restoration work at the historic Lane Chapel CME Church on Hembry Street by holding a kids pie-eating contest at 11 a.m. and a cake contest at 1 p.m., both at the Lewisville Feed Mill on the corner of Main Street and Kealy Street. Entry fees are $5 for the cake contest and $1 for pie-eating entrants. For contest rules and entry forms, e-mail jackbethramsey@verizon.net. (Media note: More information about Lane Chapel CME Church is included at the end of this release.)
Grill aficionados will have a chance to fire up their best offerings in the inaugural Great Western Burger Battle hamburger grilling contest, sponsored by Tierney’s Café & Tavern at the corner of Main Street and Kealy Street. The contest will be held at the restaurant starting at 4:30 p.m., and registration is limited. The cook whose burger is rated highest by the judges will receive a $1,000 cash prize. Entry information will be posted at www.tierneyscafeandtavern.com.
Concurrent with Western Day, the Big Bass Tour will hold its inaugural Ego Energy Drink North Texas Classic at Lewisville Lake on Sept. 27-28. Based at Lake Park, this popular event comes to Lewisville for the first time, offering amateur anglers the chance to compete for dozens of prizes while enjoying the waters of the official “Urban Bass Fishing Capital of Texas.” The angler who catches the biggest bass during each hour of the competition will win a cash prize, and the largest overall fish will capture a 2008 Nissan Titan from Avery Johnson’s North Texas Nissan. For event information, visit www.bigbasstour.com.
Children also can try their hand at competitive angling at the KidFish area of Western Day, sponsored by Big Bass Tour. The popular KidFish Catch Tank is a portable fishing pond that can accommodate up to 15 anglers at a time for 10-minute periods. It is stocked with adult channel catfish ranging from 2 to 5 pounds each.
Sponsors for Western Day 2008 include City of Lewisville, Lewisville Convention and Visitors Bureau, EMC Mortgage , Pro Tow, Bud Light, Big Bass Tour, Waste Management of Texas, The Home Depot, Dallas Tortilla & Tamale Factory and 99.5 The Wolf. Community supporters include Old Town Business Association, Old Town Preservation Society, Lewisville Morning Rotary Club, Greater Lewisville Kiwanis Club, Knight Light Charities and Lewisville High School.
For additional information and the latest on Western Day 2008, visit www.cityoflewisville.com or call 972.219.3401.
General Entertainment schedule:
- 7 a.m. OTBA 5K Fun Run
9:30 a.m. Vintage Base Ball Exhibition: Lewisville vs. Farmers Branch
11 a.m. OTPS Kids Pie Eating Contest
11:30 a.m. Main Street Gunfights
Noon Greater Lewisville Kiwanis Club Stickhorse Rodeo
1 p.m. World Tamale Eating Championship
1 p.m. Main Street Gunfights
1 p.m. OTPS Annual Cake Contest
3 p.m. Western Day Parade & Longhorn Cattle Drive
4:30 p.m. Main Street Gunfights
4:30 p.m. Lewisville Morning Rotary Club Car Show awards
4:30 p.m. Great Western Burger Battle
5 p.m. Greater Lewisville Kiwanis Club Stickhorse Rodeo
Bud Light Main Stage performance schedule:
- 10 a.m. Dallas Stars Sing
10:45 a.m. Glad Dance Troop
11:25 a.m. Beyond Words with Vaughn Anthony
12:30 p.m. Dancers in Motion
2 p.m. Derek Sholl
4:30 p.m. Casey Donahew
6:30 p.m. Eli Young Band
Community Stage performance schedule:
- 10:15 a.m. YMCA Kickers
10:50 a.m. Dance Fusion
11:15 a.m. Double Team
11:35 a.m. Macedonia Youth Dance Team
Noon Crown Violet Belly Dance Troupe
12:45 p.m. Karen Kouassi
1:25 p.m. Dancers Workshop
1:45 p.m. Performing Artists Network
2:35 p.m. Millennium Dancers
4:30 p.m. Excite! Dance Company
5:30 p.m. The Fiddle Rascals
6:55 p.m. Megan Mason band
Tailwaggers Ranch schedule of events
- 10 a.m. DOGA Doggie Yoga by Blue Anjou
10:30 a.m. Gifted Animal Program service dog demonstration
11 a.m. Doggie Contests – Waggiest Tail, Best Dressed, Most Kissable
Noon Gifted Animal Program service dog demonstration
12:30 p.m. Doggie Contests – Waggiest Tail, Best Trick, Best Bark
2 p.m. Gifted Animal Program service dog demonstration
2:30 p.m. Doggie Contests – Waggiest Tail, Owner Look Alike, Most Kissable
4 p.m. DOGA Doggie Yoga by Blue Anjou
5 p.m. Tailwaggers Parade
About Lane Chapel CME Church (per state historical marker on site)
- Anthony Hembry and six charter members, all former slaves, organized Lewisville Colored Methodist Episcopal (C. M. E.) Church in 1882. Lewisville had the largest African American population in Denton County and this church, called Lane Chapel after 1902 for Bishop Isaac Lane, was a significant social center. Other C. M. E. churches formed with the encouragement of this congregation. As rural Americans migrated to larger cities in the 1920s-1940s, the black population of Lewisville diminished and church membership dwindled. The church survived the late 20th century through donations and funds from other C. M. E. churches and the devotion of Lane Chapel members. A strong ministry in the 1990s led to a revival for Lane Chapel, and by the beginning of the 21st century membership had increased.
Media contact: Marketing and Tourism Manager Jennifer Galante, 972.219.3710
