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Rain Day good from the first drop

By Faith Headlee for The Greene County Messenger 4 min read
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Amanda Steen | Herald-Standard

Ellie (left) and Caroline Sesin compete in the umbrella-decorating contest during the Rain Day celebration in Waynesburg on Tuesday. They took second place for their theme of “It’s raining cats and dogs.”

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From left, Olivia Donley, 6, Hunter Donley, 3, and Connor Donley, 4, all from Aleppo, play a tossing game with Miss Rain Day Morgan Voithofer during Rain Day festivities in Waynesburg on Tuesday.

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Amanda Steen | Herald-Standard

From left, Joy Heisey, 12, Robby Heisey, 9, both from Mt. Morris, and Ashton Webber, 11, of Waynesburg, compete in a sack race during Rain festivities in Waynesburg on Tuesday.

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Amanda Steen | Herald-Standard

Holly Granger performs a dance routine on stage during Rain Day in Waynesburg on Tuesday.

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Amanda Steen | Herald-Standard

Makeila Lilley of Hubert, N.C., feeds a cow during Rain Day festivities in Waynesburg on Tuesday. The 8-year-old was visiting her grandparents who live in Waynesburg.

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Amanda Steen | Herald-Standard

Shyanne Wilson, 7, has her face painted at the Rain Day festival in Waynesburg on Tuesday.

WAYNESBURG — Perhaps only in Waynesburg are dark clouds considered promising for a downtown festival.

By 10:57 a.m. Tuesday, a few droplets of rain fell from the sky, making this year the 115th year out of 140 years that it has rained on Rain Day.

Mayor Duncan Berryman was one of the first to notice the rainfall. Berryman explained he was outside, signing a few documents to recognize the merchants at the festival when a drop of rain splattered against the folder holding the papers. Moments prior to that, he had heard other people announce the rainfall.

“Two of the chamber members and Rain Day committee (members) came up to me and said they felt rain up on High Street,” Berryman said. “And I said, ‘did anybody else feel anything?’ and numerous people had. They gave me their names… and then, as I was signing the paper, a drop came and hit that black cardboard that was holding the document.”

Excited by the implications of the raindrops, Berryman wanted to verify what he had seen.

“There was a van parked right behind me and I asked the lady. She rolled the window down, and I said, ‘check your windshield, do you see any raindrops?’ and she looked and she said, ‘those look like two raindrops.'”

The few drops of rain were enough to make it official.

“All you need is a raindrop for it to qualify that it rained on Rain Day,” Berryman said. “That’s been the rule since Day 1. I believed it rain, a lot of other people believed it rained. When you have a dozen or more people come up to you and saying, ‘did you feel a raindrop?’, you have believe that it rained… it’s another winner year for Waynesburg.”

Each year, the mayor bets a celebrity that it will rain on July 29, with the loser having to hand over a hat of their choice. Because of the official rainfall, Berryman won the annual Rain Day hat bet against this year’s celebrity, Patricia Heaton, who starred in sitcoms such as “Everybody Loves Raymond” and “The Middle.” This is the second year in a row that Mayor Duncan Berryman has won the bet.

The clouds began to dissipate around noon, when the umbrella-decorating contest began and word had quickly spread through the crowded streets that it had rained on Rain Day.

Newly crowned Miss Rain Day, Morgan Voithofer, age 15, was pleased to hear the news. Voithofer won her title on Sunday and was still glowing with excitement.

“I was absolutely excited and I am so honored. I burst into tears as soon as they announced my name,” Voithofer said.

Actual rain on Rain Day further added to her enthusiasm, and she was eager to enjoy the festival.

“I expect to meet a lot of new people and to do a lot of new things, I’m excited,” Voithofer said.

Voithofer and the other Miss Rain Day pageant contestants were to take the stage at 6:30 p.m. to showcase the talents that they performed at the pageant. Voithofer was to perform a musical routine to “Don’t Rain on My Parade.”

The Miss Rain Day performances were not the only ones to grace the stage. The entire day was packed with musical artists; such as Cheryl Ann Hawk, Crimson, Soldiers and Sons, Rock Bottom, and Simon Sez; and dance groups, including Ginny McClelland Dancers and Barbara Moschetta Dancers. The Rain Day Festival also featured a comedy skit, “Eluh May,” the Texaco Country Showdown, and the Dragon Scales and Faerie Tales performances. The stage was set in front of the Greene County Courthouse, between booths and tents that hosted a wide variety of vendors.

The evening was to include a more solemn event. Like in years past, there was a salute to Company K, A Battalion, from Waynesburg that served in France during World War I. Almost half of the 250 men from Greene County were either killed or wounded on Rain Day in 1918.

Even before noon, with the sun breaking through the clouds, the streets packed with people, and music beginning to play, Rain Day was already promising to be a success yet again.

“It’s just one of those events that everybody loves because there is something for everybody here,” master of ceremonies Doug Wilson said. “There’s good food, good games, a chance to see your friends and neighbors and a time to enjoy the outdoors.”

Berryman said, “It’s usually a good day with big crowds. People are very complimentary of the entertainment we have… it’s a good day.”

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