Final FreeFest event on Saturday: Ro-Na Theater will be site of all-day activities
Published 4:43 pm Wednesday, April 24, 2019
After two months of community activities, this weekend will be the final events for the FreeFest Connect aLive.
The very popular open mic night will have its final showcase under the FreeFest banner.
“Open Mic at the Iron Town Coffee Lab has been a huge success packing the venue every Friday night with standing room only,” said Sam Heighton, the executive director of Ironton aLive. “We’ve had storytellers, joke tellers, poem readers, vocalists and musicians for two full hours every Friday night. Come out this Friday and bring your talent. We want to encourage you, and we will.”
Open mic night runs 5:30-7:30 p.m.
While FreeFest will no longer present it, Heighton said Coffee Lab’s owner, Dick Fisher, would continue to have it on Fridays.
The final FreeFest event will be on Saturday at the historic Ro-Na Theater at noon.
It will feature vendors, agencies, inflatables and lots of music. The Ro-Na Day event will be open to everyone.
“Everything is free and you don’t need a ticket, as this will be another family event,” Heighton said. “We’ll have free hotdogs, chips and soft drinks. Free inflatables will be in the parking lot.”
Local performers who got a golden ticket during Open Mic Night will get their chance to perform on the stage of the Ro-Na and the artist judged to be the best will get awards.
“We’ll have special awards, games and continuous entertainment,” Heighton said. “The Ironton High School band will be with us.”
At 3 p.m., the popular band “Party Bus” will play till 4:30 p.m.
“This will be a family event so come out bring mom and dad, the kids, grandkids and neighbors and get connected with some new acquaintances,” Heighton said. “That’s what FreeFest Connect aLive is all about.”
The FreeFest events were put on by Impact Prevention and Ironton aLive.
Susan Heald, with Impact Prevention and the Community Collective project, said FreeFest is a tangible outcome of Lawrence County’s Community Collective Impact Model 4 Change project.
“We are promoting community connectedness by encouraging everyone to get out, enjoy each other and have fun through truly free events,” she said.