Mantua – As you may know, due to overwhelming community support, the Mantua Potato Festival is back on, and will take place on September 11th, 12th and 13th. If you’d like to do your part to help insure the success of this year’s Potato Festival, you’ve got plenty of opportunities in the coming weeks. Here’s what you can do:

This Saturday, June 27th, The Village Tavern in Mantua will be hosting a fundraiser from 11 am to 6 pm. Throughout the day, the establishment on Main Street will have music, compliments of local artists DJ Willis and classic rock band ‘Been a Long Time’, both of whom are donating their time to this worthwhile cause.

The tents behind the tavern will be brimming with music and family fun. Vendors will be selling roast beef sandwiches and fresh cut fries;  games and face painting will be available for the kids. There will also be chances to win fabulous prizes.

Throughout the day, you’ll have an opportunity to bid on items at the Chinese auction, where baskets include Mary Kay products, Carlton Harley-Davidson merchandise, a weekend at Roundup Lake, as well as a plethora of local gift certificates for local hair salons, pizza, oil changes, and more. There will also be a 50/50 raffle, but the high point, at least for motorbike enthusiasts, will be the dirt bike raffle provided by Blue Line Auto and Endless Journey Cycles, both local Mantua businesses.

The Village Tavern will also be selling ‘Save Our Spuds’ t-shirts which depict a super hero potato, produced by J&L Designs in Mantua. All the proceeds from sales of the shirts, which will cost $17.50, will be donated to the Mantua Potato Festival. In addition, the Tavern will donate 50% of that day’s proceeds to the Festival.

So take time to stop by to eat, drink, and buy raffle tickets. You don’t need to be present to win, as prizewinners will be notified later that evening. If you’re not available on Saturday, but would like to show your support of the Festival and this event, dirt bike raffle tickets will be available in advance — three tickets for $10 or seven tickets for $20. Stop by the Village Tavern on Main Street, or give LuLu a call at (440) 567-8710.

In addition, the Potato Festival Committee is looking for community groups, sports teams, businesses, and bands to participate in the Potato Festival Parade on Sunday, September 13th. This year especially, the Committee wants the parade to reflect just how much the Festival means to the local community. Contact the Festival Committee via their Facebook page to find out more. And that’s not all. Don’t forget — the Potato Festival planning committee meets on the third Monday each month at the Red Spudsy Building at Mantua Village Park at 7 pm. Their next meeting is July 20th — Why not stop in to see how you can help?

Stacy Turner

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Anton Albert Photography