HIGHLAND FESTIVAL
RETURNING TO ALMA COLLEGE CAMPUS
The 55th annual Alma Highland Festival and Games will be returning to its roots for the first time since 2019. For the past two years the event has been held on the grounds of Alma High School due to construction projects taking place at its original site at Alma College.
Prior to that, the festival was canceled entirely in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic, and a one-day scaled down version was held downtown in 2021 because of continued pandemic restrictions.
As usual the Highland Festival will take place over Memorial Day weekend, which is Friday through Sunday, May 24-26. It will include the normal activities such as highland dancing, piping, drumming, and professional heavyweight athletic competitions, as well as the grand parade, road runs, arts and crafts fair, and entertainment tent, among others.
The final schedule of events is still being worked out.
However, tickets are already available. The cost is $20 for a weekend pass or a four-ticket bundle for $70. For veterans, first responders and senior citizens age 62 and older the cost is $18. Children 10 and younger get in free.
Tickets are being sold at the Gratiot Area Chamber of Commerce office, 110 W. Superior St. in downtown Alma, and next door at Alma Hardware.
They can also be purchased online at www.almahighlandfestival.com.
For those looking to get their Scottish groove on a bit sooner, the Queen of Scots Pageant will take place at 7 p.m. Saturday, April 27 in the Oscar E. Remick Heritage Center at Alma College.
Contestants will be competing for not only the Queen of Scots title but also the Wee Queen for those between the ages of 8 and 11.
They are judged on their application, pre-interview and public speaking during the pageant.
The Queen of Scots winner will receive a $1,500 college scholarship, while the first and second runners-up will both receive $500 scholarships. The Wee Queen will earn a $100 scholarship.
More details are available on the Alma Highland Festival and Games website and Facebook page, or by calling the festival office at 989-463-8979..