Coal and Coke festival ready to roll
Some finishing touches are all that’s left in preparation for the third annual Coal and Coke Heritage Music Festival slated for Saturday at Penn State Fayette, The Eberly Campus. For the third year in a row, the festival committee has planned a daylong event, starting at noon, with a variety of music, food and activities for the entire family.
It has been a tradition of the festival to offer a wide variety of musical styles including, traditional German melodies, vintage rock n’ roll and soulful jazz. This year, the festival took it one step further by highlighting local acts that have stepped onto the national spotlight.
With a full slate of scheduled acts, audience members will have plenty of entertainment to enjoy.
Also on hand to entertain audiences with their talent and skill are the performers at the community stage. Among those performing are members Dance Dynamics of Mount Pleasant and the Houck Dance Studio in Uniontown.
No festival is complete without a variety of foods to tickle everyone’s taste buds.
“(There will be) funnel cakes, lemonade, hot sausage, corn dogs, gyros, ribs, ice cream and fudge,” said Susan Brimo-Cox, co-chair of the festival.
Other venders will be available selling a wide selection of wares including jewelry, soaps, kitchen items, candles, Penn State items, and local food products.
Since the festival is being held on the ninth anniversary of the terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center, the festival committee has a special ceremony planned to honor emergency first responders.
“We will be having Shawn Harris sing the national anthem and state Rep. Deberah Kula will be saying a few words,” said Brimo-Cox.
The ceremony is scheduled to take place at 4:30 p.m. on the main stage.
In addition, the committee will honor the coal miners during the festival. All miners with proper identification will be welcomed to the festival free of charge. Also, the committee would like the miners to wear their mining helmets and safety belts.
“We are hoping one of our recent graduates from the mining degree program will speak and a retired miner will be recognized,” said Brimo-Cox. The service will take place at 6:30 p.m. on the main stage.
While planning the festival, the committee even thought about the youngest attendees and created the Kiddie Koal Mine.
The activity area will feature a number of inflatable attractions for kids to bounce, play and enjoy.
Children and their family can also get up close and personal with some of their favorite animals as they visit the petting zoo.
With all of the various activities taking place from the Kiddie Koal Mine to the musicians, Brimo-Cox wanted to provide people with a few tips and reminders.
“People should bring their lawn chair. We don’t provide seating,” she said. “There is free parking on campus, and for those who need assistance, there will be golf carts on hand to ferry them around to where they need to go.”
Brimo-Cox wanted to thank everyone that has put in time and effort to make this year’s festival a success.
“We couldn’t do it without our sponsors, our committee members, the volunteers and the support of the community,” she said.
Tickets to the event are $10 in advance, $15 at the gate and children 4 and younger are free.
For more information about the festival, visit www.coalandcokemusicfest.org.