Inclement Weather Doesn’t Dampen Spirits at 74th Flaming Foliage Festival and Queens Parade
By Emily Wright
RENOVO, PA – The 74th Annual Flaming Foliage Festival saw a smaller turnout than in previous years, as the rainy forecast put a damper on attendance.
Typically held on a Saturday, the Parade of Queens was held on a Sunday for the first time in Flaming Foliage history. Still, despite intermittent rain showers, festival attendees lined the streets to watch the parade at 1 p.m. on Sunday, October 15th.
Midway through the parade, the clouds opened up and allowed the sun to shine through. There was no shortage of candy flying through the air as festival queens and other parade participants tossed it to children watching the parade, most walking away with at least a bag full.
The 74th parade was live-streamed on YouTube, attracting viewers from as far as Switzerland and Florida.
Festival organizers announced on Friday that the parade which was originally scheduled for Saturday, October 14, would be postponed to Sunday due to the forecasted daylong rain. Despite this, food and craft vendors remained open on Saturday.
Queens Advisor Maria Ransom commented on the change in plans upon the announcement, stating, “It’s not ideal, but so many people have made contributions and the preparation from the committee, not having any type of parade just isn’t an option, hopefully everyone can rally around this difficult decision and make the best of things all weekend and particularly Sunday.”
Co-chair of the PA State Flaming Foliage Festival Committee, Pattie Rauch, told The Record on Friday that as the forecast continued to show rain all day on Saturday, some parade participants began to back out. “I really started to receive the phone calls this morning of units and bands canceling, that kind of started to take the decision out of our hands” added Rauch.
In the long history of the annual festival, rain, snow, and even floods have not prevented the Parade of Queens from taking place; the only two exceptions being in 1976 and 2020.
In 1976 the parade was canceled due to inclement weather, and all royal events were relocated to the Renovo YMCA gym. Under the direction of Bucktail High School Band Director Mr. Lee Raup, the Bucktail Band performed in the gym that year, and the gym also saw the introduction of the queens. In 2020 the 72nd Flaming Foliage Festival fell victim to COVID-19, causing a cancellation of both the festival and parade.
The annual event typically draws an average of 30,000 attendees each year. This year attendance was down by about half. Nevertheless, those who did come still managed to enjoy the festivities despite the inclement weather.
This year there were fewer vendors overall, but food vendors who braved the dreary weather were Mr. Sticky’s and Sunset Ice Cream, both of Williamsport, KC Kettle Corn of Lock Haven, Grub Stop (The Valley Hotel) of Mill, Hall, Wings-N-Things owned by former Renovo native Deb Getgen, PDR’s Catering of Horseheads, NY, Rubles Concessions of Reedsville, PA, and Roger’s Lemonade of Avis, to name a few.
Several craft vendors remained open through the weekend. Mary Kennis of South Renovo, who has become well-known not only for her handmade crafts but also for her generous contributions to the Renovo community, stood out among the weekend’s craft vendors.
The PA State Flaming Foliage Festival Committee begins planning and fundraising at the conclusion of each year’s festival and continues throughout the year. When The Record spoke with Queens Advisor Maria Ransom in late August of this year, she explained that the process of coordinating the event, finding volunteers and hosts, and raising funds is a year-long endeavor. Those who may have missed the 74th PA State Flaming Foliage Festival can rest assured that planning for festival number 75 will soon be underway for the fall of 2024.
