Aberdeen Summerfest starts Saturday at 10 a.m.

Aberdeen Summerfest is almost here and Bette Worth and Bobbi McCracken, two of the main organizers for the fun, free, family event can’t wait to see everybody downtown.

The happy, hard-working, taskmasters sat down to talk about what this year’s iteration of the festival would mean.

One of the important parts of this year’s Summerfest — set for Saturday at 10 a.m., along the Broadway Street blocks between Market and Heron streets — is it’s prepared for more people. McCracken and Worth are part of the Downtown Aberdeen Association, which hosts the event.

“We have 300 tickets this year,” Worth said. “Last year there were only 250 barbecue tickets.”

The tickets, which sold quickly in 2023, allowed people to try the delicious meats from eight different vendors.

While those tickets can be purchased for $5-per-person, there is a lot of free fun to be had. This year’s iteration, the sixth for the festival, promises a little bit more.

“We’ve added some new things,” McCracken said. “We have the MAO Dancers for a half-an-hour (from 10 to 10:30 a.m.), and then at 11 a.m., we have an (American) Mystifier Magic Show.”

Worth said they’ve added an additional band. The Jake Brakes is a country-western band, and they play from noon to 1:45 p.m.

“We’re hoping that we’ll appeal to more people, a variety of different people,” Worth said. “We will also have the car show as we did last year. There will be trophies.”

And like with Summerfest 2023, there will be a People’s Choice award for the Show and Shine Car Show.

The sound will also improve.

“One thing we are gonna do, sometimes they feel isolated over there, is Rick (Moyer) and Scott (Sipe) are working closely together so the music will reach the car show,” Worth said. “And then we’ll do the awards for the car show up at the main stage.”

McCracken said another improvement for Summerfest is the festival is now set up for credit cards.

“If people want to buy T-shirts, or anything like that, we’re able to do that with a Square (merchant services),” McCracken said.

While the Chase ATM next to Rancho Alegre is nearby, it doesn’t always work. It’s not a great discovery for people who don’t usually carry cash.

“We found out at World Music Day that people wanted to purchase stuff and they would have purchased more if they could have put it on a card,” Worth said. “So, we’re listening to people.”

Activities

This year’s Summerfest, as it always does, is chock-full of activities for all ages. The schedule of events not already mentioned is as follows:

10 a.m. to 3 p.m. — Scavenger hunt

11 a.m. to 3 p.m. — Balloon artist performs

Noon to 2 p.m. — Cribbage tournament at Mount Olympus Brewing — 105 W. Heron St.

Noon to 12:30 p.m. — Skittles sorting contest

Noon to 1:30 p.m. — Barbecue tasting

1 p.m. — Watermelon eating contest

2 to 4 p.m. — The Six band

3:45 p.m. — Raffle drawing winners announced

4 p.m. — Barbecue winners announced

McCracken said another difference this year is they’re allowing additional seating.

“We’ll have two sets of bleachers in the parking lot, and some picnic (seating), but if people just want to come and take advantage of the music and the entertainment, bring some lawn chairs and kind of make a day of it,” McCracken said.

Worth said the goal is to draw the whole family and to make it a fun, family event. Part of that fun is the tasting.

“We found last year our tasting tickets, we ran out of them in like 15 minutes,” Worth said. “So this year, we are starting to sell the tickets at 11 a.m., instead of 10 (a.m.), when it gets closer to the actual time of the tasting.”

Barbecue contest

After those barbecue chefs impress their neighbors, friends and family, as well as people who have in the past come as far as Florida, they have a chance to win a good chunk of money.

“It’s a hefty amount of money,” Worth said about the prize money the barbecue participants can win. “I think we calculated over $3,000 by the time (we counted) $500 for first prize, $300 for second and $200 for third in both the chicken and pork (categories). We have (also) mystery meat again this year, and that’s $100 payout. Grand prize is $800.”

Worth said something for this year, just as it helped last year, is the beans category will be used as a tiebreaker.

“A couple years ago we had a tie and we had to pay both teams that amount of money,” Worth said. “This year we’re doing the beans again.”

To let people know how “mysterious” the meat is, last year was thin-sliced beef, according to McCracken. The year before that was Spam. Summerfest has also had water buffalo and prawns.

Worth said the other thing that makes the mystery meat category fun is there will be a platter of “condiment-like items.”

“Like onion, or garlic, or a mango,” Worth said. “They select by number what they want to incorporate with the mystery meat. They don’t know at the time they pick this item what the mystery meat is gonna be.”

Worth said she’s excited for the judges as they are every year.

“(Aberdeen Police) Chief Dale Green is gonna be back, he’s a glutton for punishment,” Worth said. “Johnny Manson, from Jodesha (Broadcasting), will be there. And Shelby Dixon, who is the director of the culinary program at Aberdeen High School, she’s gonna judge as well.”

Worth said she didn’t realize Manson has worked as a chef in the past.

“And Chief Green has eaten in the past,” McCracken said jokingly.

McCracken said the Downtown Aberdeen Association might put on the festival, but DAA isn’t the only one who makes it possible.

Can’t do it by themselves

“There are a lot of sponsors and people who have helped us, both financially and in kind,” McCracken said. “We have a relationship with the Aberdeen School District, not only having Shelby as a judge, but Jamie Mattisons is the food service director. She always allows us to use the commercial kitchen at the high school to prepare what we need, so we can have the watermelon, and everything else, so we follow the health department rules.”

To put on such an event, Summerfest has to be able to use an approved kitchen.

“They’ve been very helpful,” Worth said.

“That’s one of the things I feel good about, is that we have a good, working relationship with the city and the school district,” McCracken said. “They all understand that we’re all working for a good cause to provide a free, fun, family-friendly activity.”

Downtown Aberdeen

Worth said DAA doesn’t want to take away from the downtown businesses with something like Summerfest. Instead, they want to help the businesses.

“We’re hoping by bringing people downtown that it’ll give them an opportunity to see what our downtown has to offer,” Worth said. “They can shop at the local businesses. That’s always been our intent, to promote the downtown.”

Raffle

The raffle tickets — a donation of $5 — could lead people to something cool, something exciting.

“Our first prize, a Westport weekend getaway, that’s two nights at the Chateau Westport,” Worth said. “And then a number of gift cards so you can have breakfast there, (and other fun things).”

Worth said the prize, which allows people to venture to other shops and restaurants in Westport, is worth “about $750.”

The second prize is a summer picnic package, “valued at about $400,” according to Worth.

“It’s an easy-up canopy, that’s what it says on the box,” Worth said. “It includes an ice chest, camping chairs, a table, a Weber barbecue, charcoal and cooking utensils that were donated by the Dennis Company Ace and Downtown Aberdeen Association.”

Third prize is a Blackstone grill — a 36- or 38-inch grill, according to McCracken. The prize, valued at about $300, was donated by DAA and Walmart.

Fourth prize is “S’mores Galore fire pit,” which is a propane fire pit. The prize includes necessary items to make s’mores, rotisserie sticks, two camping chairs, a serving tray, garden signs and an UNO game.

Fifth prize is “Sample Cuisine in Aberdeen,” according to Worth. The prize includes gift cards for area restaurants, such as Duffy’s, Billy’s Bar and Grill, Chinese Village, Go Get the Pho, and Tinderbox Coffee Roasters.

“A lot of the gift cards, some were donated,” McCracken said. “But it’s hard because we are trying to support downtown businesses. So, we try to purchase as much as we can with the funds we raise throughout the year. We’re trying to not go to businesses and ask for money.”

But that’s the importance of the raffle and tasting tickets.

“By selling the raffle tickets and selling the tasting tickets, we’re able to do that kind of thing,” McCracken said.

Contact Reporter Matthew N. Wells at matthew.wells@thedailyworld.com.

In addition to the eight barbecue vendors, there will be other vendors, such as Rorro’s Tacos. Victor, seen here, is always a popular stop for people who hunger for more than barbecue. In addition to Rorro’s Tacos, Rancho Alegre will also have a tent at the festival, where people can taste the meaty fruits of his labor. There are other vendors too, but Downtown Aberdeen Association, the overarching association that puts on Summerfest, has other vendors, like a kettle corn and lemonade merchant, but DAA encourages people to head to the other businesses nearby. (Rick Moyer of Moyer Multi Media LLC.)