Irish Moss Festival underway

JOURNAL PIONEER

This time last year Megan Keough was in final preparation mode to represent Shirley’s Café in the Tignish Irish Moss Festival pageant.

Fast-forward 12 months and Kinch is not only preparing to relinquish her Miss Irish Moss 2017 crown to her successor, but she has taken on additional responsibilities as co-ordinator of this year’s festival.

She acknowledges she has a much greater appreciation and understanding of the work that goes into running a festival this time around.

She got offered the position while attending an early spring planning committee meeting. A core group of six volunteers, as well as facility staff, have helped plan this year’s festival events, which got underway Tuesday and run until Sunday, Canada Day. Numerous other volunteers are ready to help stage the long lineup of festival events.

The theme of this year’s festival and Sunday’s festival parade is, “Fun in the Sun”.

Some of the highlight events in the early days of the festival included the pageant contestants doing hair, make-up and nails for pageant princesses Thursday evening at the recreation office and a Wine and Beer Festival at the Legion. The P.E.I. Mutual Youth Talent Contest was also staged at Credit Union Arena Friday evening.

The schedule gets really busy for the final two days of the festival as today’s agenda starts with a townwide yard sale at 8 a.m. The seven teens participating in the Miss Irish Moss pageant will participate in a pancakeflipping contest during a pancake breakfast at Shirley’s Café at 9 a.m. The contestants will also attend the festival’s official opening at Credit Union Arena at 6:30 p.m. Saturday and will be back on stage at 7 p.m. for the talent portion of the pageant.

Other events today include a Princesses and Knights Tea Party at MJs Bakery at 2 p.m., a festival golf tournament at St. Felix Golf Course at 1 p.m. and the Irish Moss Festival’s adult dance with Old Doctor Young at 10 p.m.

The festival’s co-ed ball tournament goes Sunday at 9 a.m., the annual parade is at 1 p.m., a family fun day at Bicentennial Park and a horse pull will happen behind the park at 2 p.m., a Michael Pendergast show is set for 4:30 p.m. and the final portions of the Irish Moss Festival Pageant get underway at 7 p.m. Keough will crown her successor.

A fireworks show off the North Block at Judges Point serves as the festival’s finale at 10 p.m.