OUR COMMUNITY LOCAL FOCUS HIGHLIGHTS AREA NEWS, EVENTS

As event and festival cancellations begin to extend into the autumn months, one more late summer favorite can be added to the list. Last week, it was announced that Kettering’s popular Holiday at Home festival and parade would be canceled due to fears over the spread of the coronavirus.

The festival was set to take place, as it does every other year, over the Labor Day weekend, from Sept. 6-7.

Each year, this Labor Day celebration features a parade, a 5K, an arts and craft show, an auto show, children’s activities, live music and more. Each year, more than 100,000 spectators flock to Kettering to enjoy this festival.

“Our hometown spirit is alive and well during this unprecedented time our city is going through,” according to a press release from the city of Kettering. “Last week the City of Kettering made some difficult decisions to maintain safety for its citizens. In accordance with those decisions, this year’s Holiday at Home committee has decided to cancel this year’s festival.”

Festival organizers went on to urge its citizens to enjoy the holiday in safer ways, like “walking trails in our parks and fishing in our local ponds.”

Plans for the 2021 Holiday at Home parade and festival are already in the works, and event organizers hope that it will be the best version of the Labor Day celebration to date.

For more information about the Holiday at Home cancellation, and to stay up-to-date on all future announcements, visit the event’s website or Facebook page. ASHLEY MOOR, STAFF WRITER