08/04/2026
That's a Wrap on the 2026 Ohio River Festival!
⚓️🩵🌊
What a weekend! Sorry in advance for the long post!
As we look back on another Ohio River Festival, our hearts are full. Seeing our community come together is what this festival has always been about, and this year you showed up in a BIG way. From kids laughing on the inflatables and carnival rides to families enjoying our Kids Day activities, it was wonderful to see so many smiling faces throughout the weekend.
Our 5K Run/Walk and Kids Fun Run exceeded every expectation with an incredible turnout. Thank you to everyone who laced up their shoes and participated!
The Chippewa Lake Water Ski Show Team once again amazed the crowds with five incredible performances throughout the weekend. We absolutely love having you in Ravenswood. You are not only incredibly talented, but such a wonderful group of people, and we are grateful to have you as part of our festival each year.
Thank you to all of our food vendors, craft vendors, pet pageant participants, Crazy Raft Race teams, and every one of our amazing entertainers for helping create such an unforgettable weekend.
To every one of our sponsors, thank you. Simply put, this festival would not have been possible without you. Your generosity allows us to continue this historic tradition, and we are truly grateful for your investment in our community.
A heartfelt thank you to the Ravenswood Police Department, Ravenswood Fire Department & Water Rescue, and Jackson County EMS. You spent countless hours throughout the weekend making sure everyone remained safe and cared for. We appreciate your dedication more than words can express.
To Bob, Hutch, and the entire City of Ravenswood Maintenance Crew, thank you will never be enough. You began preparing the park weeks before the festival and worked long hours throughout the weekend. From setup to electrical issues for vendors and everything in between, you were always there. You are truly invaluable to both our city and our festival, and we hope you know how much your hard work is appreciated.
Thank you to Megan and the City Hall staff for all of your help this year. As a fairly new committee, we've leaned on you often, and your guidance and willingness to help have meant so much to us. We are forever grateful.
Mayor Miller, thank you for believing in this festival and for your continued support. Not many people truly understand the value that fairs and festivals bring to communities, but you do. We also recognize the personal sacrifice you made this weekend by missing your daughter's last U10 Softball World Series to be here helping with the festival. Every time we needed something, you answered the call. Thank you for always being there.
Thank you to Addie and everyone at the Great Bend Museum and Sayre Log Cabin for partnering with us again this year. We appreciate everything you did to help make the weekend a success and look forward to working together again in the future.
A special thank you to Dee Scritchfield for organizing our golf cart shuttle volunteers once again this year. Thank you to Julie Bradford, who volunteered the entire weekend transporting guests with a smile, along with Elaine and Pat Varney, Tracy Hall and The Glow Movement, Danny Mitchell, Amanda Slaven (who even stayed beyond her scheduled shift), Megan Thompson, Megan Weiss, Missy Wolfe, Jeff Koon, Jodi Kerns, Suzanne Templin, Mayor Miller, and Dee Scritchfield. Your willingness to give your time helped so many people enjoy the festival.
Thank you to Hazel Brammer, Fran, Patti, Kendi Curtis, Autumn, and Amanda Morgan for volunteering at our Welcome Booth. We appreciate each of you for greeting guests, answering questions, and helping throughout the weekend.
Thank you to Rick and Scott with RMA Presents for helping guide us through this year and bringing outstanding entertainment to the Ohio River Festival. Scott, your patience, advice, and willingness to answer countless questions made a tremendous difference for our committee. Having you there throughout the weekend was invaluable.
Thanks to Muth Audio for another astounding job done with our sound and lights! Great crew to work with and we appreciate you!
Thank you to our stage hands, Ryder, Jacob, Rueben, and Blaine, for all of your hard work behind the scenes.
A special thank you to Mark McComas for donating his time to create caricature drawings for our Kids Day participants. Thank you to Edsel Young for entertaining everyone with his magic show and balloon artistry. We also want to thank the Daughters of the American Revolution (DAR) for joining us for Kids Day and hosting a Read Aloud at the Sayre Log Cabin. These activities helped make Kids Day extra special for so many families.
Thank you to Martin Unrue for spending every day of the festival capturing thousands of special moments and then putting in countless hours editing photos so our community can relive the weekend. Your dedication does not go unnoticed, and we are incredibly grateful.
Thank you also to Shane Johnson for spending time throughout the weekend capturing video footage of the festival. We appreciate you preserving these memories and look forward to seeing the finished product.
To every one of our food and craft vendors, thank you for choosing to be part of the Ohio River Festival. We truly enjoy having you here each year. Despite the weather forecast trying to throw a wrench into our plans, Sunday turned out to be absolutely beautiful, and we were thrilled to see such a wonderful crowd enjoying the final day of the festival.
A very special thank you to our Ohio River Festival Queens and Royalty for representing our festival with grace, kindness, and pride, not only throughout festival weekend but all year long. We couldn’t be prouder 🩵👑
Finally, to our committee...
This year began with its challenges. We started with a small group and grew throughout the year into an incredible team of dedicated volunteers.
Planning a festival doesn't happen in one weekend. It takes months of fundraising, meetings, coordinating vendors, booking entertainment, planning logistics, and solving countless problems behind the scenes.
Our committee is 100% volunteer. We spend countless hours away from our families and friends because we believe this festival is worth preserving. During festival weekend, we rarely get the chance to sit back and enjoy it ourselves because we're busy making sure everyone else can.
There were long days, stressful moments, and plenty of running from one thing to the next, but together, we made it happen.
Keith, Keisha, Sheril, Kathy, Angie, Megan, Carissa, Trevor, Jodi, Scott, Crystal, and Missy, thank you. This festival would not have been possible without your commitment, your hard work, and your willingness to serve this community.
Most importantly, thank you to everyone who attended the 2026 Ohio River Festival. Your support is what keeps this tradition alive.
We know we're not perfect, and every year we learn, grow, and look for ways to make the festival even better. If you have positive, constructive feedback or would like to become involved, we invite you to join us at one of our open committee meetings. We are always looking for community members who want to help keep this festival thriving.
If you're interested in sponsoring the 2027 Ohio River Festival, please reach out. Planning for next year has already begun, and every contribution helps.
If we inadvertently left anyone out, please know it was not intentional. It truly takes an entire community to make this festival happen, and we're still catching our breath after an amazing weekend! Thank you to every volunteer, sponsor, participant, and supporter who helped make the 2026 Ohio River Festival one to remember.
From all of us on the Ohio River Festival Committee, thank you for another incredible year.
We'll see you in 2027! ⚓️🩵⚓️
