This summer’s two-day annual Sartell SummerFest, June 13-15, will include a family party, a big parade, a school reunion, a dance, fireworks, golfing fun and much more.
Party
SummerFest 2014 will kick off with a family-fun party on the grounds of the Bernick’s Arena, starting at 5 p.m. Friday, June 13. The free event will offer music, kids’ games, inflatables, face-painting, airbrushed tattoos and much more. Food will be available for purchase. The Sartell Community Band will start the music at 5:30 p.m., and more music will follow until 9 p.m. People are encouraged to bring blankets and chairs. Additional parking will be available at nearby Pine Meadow Elementary School, with a shuttle bus running to and from the school from 4-10 p.m.
Races
Also on Friday evening, the St. Cloud Orthopedics 5k Run, 3k Walk and 1K Kids’ Fun Run will take place. The 5k Run and 3k Walk will begin at 6 p.m. in front of Sartell City Hall, followed by the 1k Fun Run for kids ages 5-11 at about 7 p.m. Prizes will be awarded to the top 5K runners in each age category and to the top male and top female overall runners. Race-day registrations are possible. Before the event there will be kids’ events and much more. Proceeds from the event will help support recreational activities in the Sartell area. To volunteer to help at the race, call Andrea at 320-212-6418. To register, visit www.SartellSummerFest.com.
Parade
A guaranteed annual crowd-pleaser is the grand parade, which will start at 10 a.m. Saturday, June 14. This year’s parade, dubbed the St. Cloud Federal Credit Union Parade, will feature eight high-school bands. It will travel along Riverside Avenue from Sartell Street to 7th Street N. and finish at Sartell Middle School. The judging area will be on Riverside Avenue near the DeZurik plant. Handicapped parking is available in the DeZurik parking lot. For parade entry registration forms, go to www.SartellSummerFest.com.
Reunion
From 1-6 p.m. Saturday, there will be a reunion for anyone who attended the old grade school in Sartell, now the school system’s District Services Building. The reunion will take place at the Bernick’s Arena, with time to socialize with old friends and the viewing of photos from Sartell’s history, as well as all forms of city and school memorabilia. Food and non-alcoholic beverages will be available for purchase. A bus tour will allow visitors to see the many changes that have occurred in Sartell in just the past two decades. The old school will be open for guided tours conducted by members of the Sartell Senior Connection.
Dance-Fireworks
The Partners Pub Street Dance will take place Saturday evening in the Great River Bowl parking lot. Gates will open at 5 p.m. for the beer garden and food court. Music by Whiskey Tango will start at 6 p.m., and Diamondback will take the stage at 8:30 p.m. Fireworks, sponsored by Blue Line Sports Bar and Grill, will begin about 10 p.m. to the south of Great River Bowl.
Golf
Those in the mood to golf can do so Sunday at Blackberry Ridge Golf Course, where a Sartell SummerFest Special will offer 18 holes of golf with cart for $19.07 (1907 being the year Sartell was founded). There will be a free beginner’s golf clinic starting at 3 p.m. with PGA professional Brock Swanson. After 5 p.m., kids under age 10 can eat free with each paid adult meal. To register, call 320-257-4653.
photo by Larry Pearson
Below: From the far north end of Riverside Avenue in Sartell, a large crowd lines the parade route for the start of the 2013 parade.
