Putting on a festival that attracts thousands to Iuka every Labor Day weekend is a complicated job requiring the cooperation and hard work of many volunteers, and in 2022, the Iuka Heritage Committee knocked it out of the park! Actual attendance numbers were unavailable, but festival attendees parked all over town to come to the town-wide party in Mineral Springs Park September 3rd. There were a record number of vendors, and a huge car show in conjunction, making it about the largest gathering in the county.
Many people think that the City of Iuka does Heritage Day, but the committee actually does all the planning, fundraising, and organization themselves, with the city cooperating on law enforcement, crowd control, and making sure the town infrastructure is ready for the crowds.
Starting right after the 2021 event, committee members started planning for the September 3rd event. Fundraisers, invitations to hundreds of vendors, dozens of performers, and all the infrastructure and inter-agency cooperation requires folks with a common goal of producing a top-notch event.
It must have worked - organizer Shana Hollon said, "This was the first year we literally had to move people along to go home! They were having such a good time they wanted to stay at the Park long after all our planned activities!"
The committee starts planning the 2023 event in January and invites everyone to come on board the Heritage Day committee!