Wauseon fest may draw 50K

7/18/2003

WAUSEON - The Wauseon Homecoming Festival, the biggest party of the year in the Fulton County seat, boasts a 175-unit parade, a midway, festival food, and entertainment by two bands tonight and five tomorrow.

Co-chairman Tom Bechill predicted 50,000 people will attend the three-day festival, which began downtown yesterday. That would be nearly seven times the population of Wauseon, and if the weather is good, the festival is expected to produce profits of $30,000 to $50,000 for city park projects. .

Highlights include:

TODAY

4:30 p.m. to midnight -Midway open

5:45 - Pie-eating contest

6 to 7:30 - Talent show

7:30 to 9 - Hand Hewn String Band

9:30 to 11 - Outlaw Country band

TOMORROW

11 a.m. to midnight -Midway open

11 a.m. - Parade

1:30 to 3 - Children's games

2-3 - Thunder Road country band

3:30 to 5 - Sorpresa Latin band

5:30 to 7 - Villaruz Sisters

7:30 to 9 - R.S. Express

9:30 to 11 - Childz Play classic rock band

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The festival takes place on six blocks of Fulton Street - the main drag through Wauseon's downtown - between Leggett and Oak streets. The parade follows a 10-block route from South Park at the end of Fulton Street, up Fulton, and east on Elm Street to Shoop Avenue.