October is, without a doubt, the month of Glorious from its perfect temperatures to its glorious fall foliage and seems to be celebrated the world over in the form of Oktoberfests.
The most famous festival is held in Munich Germany and began 60 years ago. This year it will run from September 21 to October 6 and the event will draw 6 million people from all over the world.
Jefferson City, Missouri’s State capital has a large area of the town they usually call the Southside but is also known as Old Munichburg. There is an Old Munichburg Association that is dedicated to preserving not only the architecture of the area but the culture too.
They meet monthly and their Oktoberfest, held on September 28, drew people from around the state to partake in the German music and German foods, topped off with beer, dancing and even the now famous Dachound Derby where the little “wiener” dogs race to the finish line. One man in an interview stated, “We’re all German today.”
Lee’s Summit held their annual three-day event this past week-end that is now in its sixth year and draws ever enlarging attendance. The festival takes over the entire downtown area and it takes approximately 400 volunteers to prepare for the 120,000 expected attendees.
Cole Camp also joined in and held their annual celebration of all things German in the Jaycee Gardens. Cole Camp’s German singers set the tone for the day by serenading everyone with songs sung in the low German language that was spoken in the Cole Camp area.
The aroma of Brats roasting and the “made from scratch” German Potato salad set the tone for a fun filled afternoon for young and old alike. One little guy posed along the photo-op wall mounted Junger Mann and Fraulein figures as they danced gaily to polka music.
The streets were filled and many were forced to park their cars on the south end of Maple Street on the Lutheran School lot. The festive atmosphere in the Jaycee Gardens seemed to have spilled all over town as people strolled the downtown, investigating the various shops.
Later in the afternoon I encountered a gentleman from Independence, Missouri who had thoroughly enjoyed his day in the town. He had by-passed the celebration at Lees Summit to bring his 90 year old parents to enjoy the day. He said they had both emigrated from Germany and had so thoroughly enjoyed hearing all the songs performed by the German choir in their native tongue.
He stated, “I couldn’t believe it when they started singing along too. They have really enjoyed the day, even the great German band that performed.”
Dylana Fox, Cole Camp Chamber President, who was chairperson for the event felt like attendance was up this year and did attribute some of the success to the great weather conditions but also felt the Die Deutschmeister Musik Makers band that performed had drawn extra attendance. Another great day in Cole Camp!
