Waynesburg residents ready for Rain Day
WAYNESBURG – On Monday, it won’t take much from Mother Nature – a sprinkle, drizzle, even a light shower. But as long as it rains in the borough, folks who will line the streets to celebrate Rain Day will have reason to rejoice.
For 107 of the past 127 years, it has rained in Waynesburg on July 29, and organizers are hoping for just a little precipitation to add to the streak.
Many will carry umbrellas – whether they’re needed or not – as they walk along High Street to listen to music, sample food or enjoy the day full of activity.
According to Melody Longstreth, executive director of the Waynesburg Chamber of Commerce, the day begins with an umbrella contest at 11:45 a.m. before the entertainment starts at noon.
Visitors already may have seen the new planters that have been hung by Waynesburg Prosperous and Beautiful Inc., an organization formed to work on revitalization efforts within the borough. The planters are hanging just underneath Rain Day banners that have also been placed in advance of the festival.
This year, most of the booths from vendors, crafters or organizations will be lined in the middle of High Street as opposed to against the curb, in an attempt to give more space for foot traffic in and out of the downtown businesses.
“Moving some of the booths to the middle plays right into our revitalization efforts,” Longstreth said. “It will open those businesses up a bit more and make it easier for people to get in and out of there.”
She said the food areas will remain the same and the entertainment will be as varied as always.
Another annual tradition is the hat bet, in which a local or national celebrity wagers against the borough mayor that rain will not fall on Rain Day. This year, Washington Wild Things manager and former Pittsburgh Pirates pitcher Kent Tekulve has thrown his hat into the fray.
Previous bettors have included country music trio the Dixie Chicks, Johnny Carson, Jay Leno, the Three Stooges, Bing Crosby, Arnold Palmer and Mario Lemieux.
The annual Rain Day commemorative T-shirt features a shooting star with tumbling red, white and blue umbrellas. The shirt reads, “Rain Day, July 29, 2002, Waynesburg, PA USA” and will be available throughout the day in a variety of sizes, Longstreth said.
This year’s entertainment lineup includes a performance by acapella singing group Four Shadow at noon.
Longstreth said the show was timed with the lunch hour so that many people who have to work on Rain Day will be able to enjoy some of the entertainment during their time away from the office.
After Four Shadow, Dustin the Magician takes the lower stage at 1 p.m., followed by a presentation from Warrior Trail at 1:30 p.m. The band Almost Cool begins playing at 2 p.m. on the upper stage, while a performance from Barbara’s Dancing School gets under way at 2:30 p.m. on the lower stage.
On the upper stage, gospel band Gone Fishin’ will perform at 3 p.m., followed by the WANB Country Showdown from 4 to 5:30 p.m., and The Jaggerz will round out the day’s entertainment with a show at 7:30 p.m.
On the lower stage, Ginny McClelland Dancers will perform at 3:30 p.m., followed by the 6 p.m. introduction of the Miss Rain Day 2002 contestants, including Miss Rain Day 2002 Rachel Marie Burack of Greensboro.
Burack, 17, a senior at Mapletown Junior-Senior High School and the daughter of Charles and Cyndee Burack of Greensboro, is the first Miss Rain Day ever from the Southeastern Greene School District.
A dancer and captain of the varsity cheerleading squad, she said she is still surprised by her winning the crown last Sunday at the pageant. “I keep thinking, ‘Did this really happen?'” she said. “It’s been very nice and I am having a lot of fun with it.”
Burack performed an acro-jazz dance to “Queen Bee” and was also named Miss Riverfest 2002 during the Rices Landing festival earlier this summer. She will also serve as the Mapletown representative in the Pennsylvania Bituminous Coal Queen pageant in Carmichaels next month.
Burack said she was excited to see former Miss Rain Day and newly crowned Miss Pennsylvania Autumn Marisa at Sunday’s pageant, and seeing Marisa’s success only makes her want to try harder.
In the meantime, she will preside over much of the festivities Monday, but will also have to make a quick change and join her fellow Ginny McClelland dancers for a performance in the afternoon before changing back in time for the presentation of the Rain Day court.
Members of the court include Megan Denelle Samek of Carmichaels, Elizabeth Jane Carroll of Waynesburg, Emily Spade of Waynesburg and Courtney Franks of Rices Landing.
After the court has been introduced, a performance of “You’re A Good Man, Charlie Brown” will be held on the lower stage at 6:30 p.m., followed by a tribute to Company K at 7 p.m. After the tribute, Baby Rain Day, window decoration contest and Rain Day Race winners will be announced.
Longstreth said it will be a busy day for her and all the others involved in making the event a success, but she said she is hoping for an early morning phone call from one of the Waynesburg borough police officers on patrol – who will serve as informal rain sentinels for the day.
“I have an interview with National Public Radio at 6:30 Monday morning, and I want to be able to tell them it has already rained here,” she said. “I want to be woken up in the middle of the night to hear that.”
And, is there any doubt about Monday’s possibility of precipitation? “Oh, it is going to rain,” Longstreth said. “But it will be in the middle of the night so the festival is safe. All it takes is a sprinkle on a windshield.”
According to the story, the tradition of Rain Day began in the late 1800s, when a local farmer remarked to pharmacist William Allison that it always seemed to rain on July 29.
After that, Allison began recording rainfall on July 29 in Waynesburg and the mystery of Rain Day became a local legend.