By Conrad Dudderar
Senior Staff Writer
To fill a void on the first Saturday in October in downtown Yukon, Yukon’s Best Main Street members are planning fall fun on Oct. 3.
The Oklahoma Czechs, Inc. this spring canceled the annual Oklahoma Czech Festival in downtown Yukon due to COVID-19 concerns.
So, there won’t be the traditional “Czech Day” events like the Main Street parade, carnival, craft fair, and Czech royalty crowning that people have grown to expect on the first Saturday in October.
In response, members of the Yukon 66 Main Street Association decided to move up their fall fest activities to Saturday, Oct. 3 in downtown Yukon.
“It’s not like the Czech Festival on Main Street; it’s more of a ‘fall gathering’,” Yukon Main Street Director Vicki Davis said. “We started this last year and hope it will eventually grow into a huge event.
“To kind of ‘fill that void’ on October 3, we’ll have our scarecrow stroll, ‘pop-out shopping’ sidewalk sales, sidewalk chalk art contest, snack food trucks, and pumpkin patch.”
Alpacas will event be strolling Yukon’s downtown area during the festivities.
Yukon residents are encouraged to create their own scarecrows to be displayed along the Main Street business district throughout October.
“People are wanting to get out and do some things,” Davis said. “This is something really fun that families, businesses, organizations, schools, and churches can do. It’s a great promotional thing for themselves, their business or organization. We’ll give prizes out too.”
For more information, visit http://www.yukonok.gov or call the Yukon Main Street office at (405) 350-5999.
‘BREW AND WINE FEST’
Yukon’s Best Main Street members asked local churches, businesses and organizations to participate in the “first-Saturday-in-October” downtown Yukon celebration – sans Czech Day.
“That’s what this is all about,” Davis said. “Doing things to attract people to downtown with the focus on the businesses.”
Davis said the Yukon Chamber “stepped up” by organizing a wine and beer testing on Oct. 3.
The inaugural “Yukon’s Best Brew and Wine Fest”, in the 10 W Main parking lot, will be an admission event featuring Oklahoma wineries and breweries.
“We want to have something to keep people coming here to Yukon on the first Saturday in October,” Yukon Chamber CEO Pam Shelton said. “I think many people will still think we’re having Czech Fest and will still come to Main Street Yukon.”
A beer and wine festival at 10 W Main could be incorporated into future Czech Days.
There will be Czech heritage celebration – featuring food, music and dancing – starting at 5 p.m. Oct. 3 at Yukon Czech Hall, 205 N Czech Hall Road.
