The Enid News and Eagle, Enid, OK

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September 14, 2008

Kenwood Festival not dampened by rain

By Robert Barron, Staff Writer

The rain dampened some of the attendance at the Kenwood Golden Days 2008 festival over the weekend, but none of the spirit.

Hurricane Ike helped produce heavy rain that resulted in cancellation of the Cherokee Strip Days parade, and moved some other events indoors during the annual celebration, during which Ken-wood Golden Days festival was being held. Still, volunteers were upbeat about the weekend, and topped it off with a Christian concert Sunday evening that was moved from David Allen Mem-orial Ballpark to Emmanuel Baptist Church.

“The kids were darling,” said Becky Cummings, who headed up the Kenwood festival. “The least popular event was the rain.”

Cummings said the women’s tea was successful and the opening dinner was very successful. She said with the help of Emerson Junior High School and Lincoln Alternative School, which are both located in the Kenwood Historic District, some events could be held inside.

“The Kenwood neighbors pulled together like none other. The Lions Club was incredible and the churches went above and beyond, “ she said.

Volunteer Marcia Reece, who lives in the Kenwood Historic District, said the festival was a learning experience.

“We started with the idea to get more neighbors involved. We have lots of young people now and they have pride in the area, keeping the area safe, and pride in where we live,” Reece said.

The neighbors can use the area now, she said. That is the purpose of the festival — to increase neighborhood participation. For many years the neighborhood was occupied mostly by elderly people and absentee landlords who sometimes allowed their property to deteriorate. Now, with younger families and children moving in, the neighborhood is taking on a different personality, she said.

Contemporary Christian artist Mark Harris sang during the conclusion of the festival concert. The concert was moved from David Allen Memorial Ballpark to Emmanuel Baptist Church because of recent heavy rains. Harris performed, along with Christian group Remedy Drive and OK Chorale, a state champion barbershop group.

Harris does 75 performances a year and has been a Christian entertainer for 20 years. He lives on the Gulf Coast in Alabama and said there was some damage from Hurricane Gustav but not from Ike. Harris started performing right out of college with a group called Trust, then traveled for many years with the Christian group 4Him, before going out on his own.

Next week he will play in three states over an eight-day period. He records for INO Records, owned by Jeff Moseley, formerly of Enid.

In spite of the weather problems, some volunteers believe the Kenwood festival should be done again next year.

“It’s important enough to be done again next year with lessons learned. There was a lot of fun, hard work and community involvement,” Reece said. “We reached out to the whole community.”

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