By Keith Knepp
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NAPPANEE — The 48th annual Nappanee Apple Festival returns to the Elkhart County community Sept. 19-22. Considered one of the best festivals in Indiana, it takes place in a community that is ranked among the top five places to live in Indiana.
A highlight of this year’s festival is the display of items from a recently unearthed time capsule placed in the ground 50 years ago during the town’s centennial celebration. This year, Nappanee is celebrating its 150th anniversary. The items will be on display Friday and Saturday from 9 a.m. to 7 p.m. at the Evelyn Lehman Culp Heritage Museum in the Nappanee Center, 302 W. Market St.
This year’s Grand Marshals are Sam and Lisa Beachy, longtime residents and business owners in town. Sam served on the Apple Festival Committee for 10 years, including five years as its director. He also served as a city councilman for six years and on the board of the Kosciusko County Builders Association for 15 years, including two years as its president. Lisa works from home and volunteers at the Apple Festival, local schools and the Nappanee Missionary Church.
This year’s Nappanee Apple Festival Parade, which includes an airplane flyover, begins at 10:30 a.m. on Saturday, September 21, and travels down Market Street (US 6) from Miriam Avenue west to Nappanee Street.
WeFlip Entertainment is this year’s headline show, offering shows all day Friday, Saturday and Sunday in the parking lot of the Nappanee Library, 157 N. Main St.
Entertainment will be provided on three stages, with a variety of live music on each of the four festival days. Additionally, the Miss Apple Blossom beauty pageant will be held on Thursday, September 19th at 7 p.m. under the Kountry Cabinets Entertainment Tent in the Depot Plaza.
The Napple Store, located on the corner of Market and Clark Streets, offers a variety of apple treats, including slices of the festival’s famous six-foot-tall apple pie, which weighs over 300 pounds and takes 17 hours to bake!
There are rides on South Main Street (SR 19). Wristbands are available for $25-30 per day, allowing children unlimited rides.
For more information and a full schedule of events, visit nappaneeapplefestival.org. You can also visit the festival’s Facebook and Instagram pages by searching @napplefest. Printed brochures are also available at local vendors and throughout the festival grounds.
