Daffodil festival Saturday
By Steve Herring
Published in News on March 31, 2017 8:45 AM
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News-Argus/CASEY MOZINGO
File photo - in this 2016 Daffodil festival photo, Alayna Johnson, 5, chases bubbles as rain temporarily halts activity during the annual Daffodil Festival in Fremont Saturday. Before the rain, Alayna rode several of the rides in the children's play area, but when the rain stopped her goal was to get ice cream.
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News-Argus/CASEY MOZINGO
Festival goers visit vendor tents between rain showers during the 2016 Fremont Daffodil Festival.
FREMONT -- The 31st annual Fremont Daffodil Festival will be held from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday, April 1.
Joining the lineup of food and arts and crafts vendors this year will be the addition of retail vendors -- a fist for the festival. As of press time Friday morning 86 vendors had signed up for the festival.
Another first will be the GoWayneGo 5K Walk, sponsored by Wayne UNC Health Care, that will step off at 10 a.m.
But while there are a couple of firsts, the festival will still feature its traditional lineup of free entertainment and activities.
The opening ceremony will be held from 10 to 10:30 a.m. on the Main Street stage.
The opening ceremonies will be followed by the Fremont Memorial Park recognition on Goldsboro Street.
The recognition is a tradition to honor those who have died and who have made a difference in their community.
The Embers will be in from noon to 2 p.m. on the stage on Sycamore Street near the Methodist Church.
Or-D-Nary Gentlemen and local groups will perform on the stage near the intersection of Main and Goldsboro streets.
Or-D-Nary Gentlemen will perform from 3 to 4:30 p.m.
Other entertainment on the Main Street stage will include:
• 10:30 to 10:50 a.m., Fremont Preschool.
• 10:50 to 11:15 a.m., Fremont STARS.
• 11:15 a.m. to noon, 3 Dancing Sisters & Co.
• 2 to 3 p.m., Special entertainment.
• 3 to 3:30 p.m., Desiree Autrey's Academy of Performing Arts.
• 3:30 to 4:30 p.m., Or-D-Nary Gentlemen.
• 4:30 to 5 p.m., ticket drawings.
The Children's Alley will be located in the BB&T parking lot on Main Street and feature a variety of activities for children including rides on Bella Express the trackless train.
Other activities will include remote-controlled racing, the Screamer Slide, Big Top Playground, a 40-foot obstacle course, dunking booth, bounce house and inflatables.
All-day events include an open house at the Fremont heritage Museum, 112 E. Main St.; Fremont Garden Club exhibit at town hall; 501st Legion and Worldwide Star Wars costuming group; and antique Tractor Club of the Carolina display.
Saturday's forecast calls for sunny skies with a high of 75. But in case of inclement weather, the festival will be held in the Fremont Elementary School gym.
Bugs Barriger, a writer for the News & Observer, called Fremont "The Daffodil Town" in 1958 article about town's daffodil gardens.
The festival was started in 1986 to celebrate the blooming yellow flower and the arrival of spring.
For more information, call Brenda Paul at 919-734-2905 or Keith Stewart at 919-242-4573.