(Matt Drzik/Beaver County Radio)

“I got butterflies. I can’t believe it’s actually going to happen.”

The excitement from Committee General Chair Raylene Boots in describing her anticipation for the upcoming Ellwood City Arts Festival has been echoed by several vendors, crafters, and citizens of the Ellwood City area; this edition of the Festival is the first since 2019 due to the pandemic. She, along with Vice Committee Chair Richard DiGia, joined Matt Drzik on the June 24 edition of A.M. Beaver County to talk about the 2022 edition of the Arts Festival, which will take place in Ewing Park during July 2nd, 3rd and 4th.

Over the course of those three days, those attending will get to experience over a dozen different live musical acts, a Hall of Fame ceremony honoring those who have helped build the Festival to what it has become, and an art show showcasing local renditions of a certain theme (this year’s is “Succeeding Together”) that those in attendance can look at and vote for–on top of all of the local vendors serving food and local artists displaying their own crafts. The festival will culminate in a fireworks show at 10 PM on Sunday, July 3rd at the Ewing Park Football Field.

In lieu of this year’s comeback festival, DiGia and his wife Mari decided to create a new mascot for the festivities. The mascot is an 8 foot-9 inch eagle dressed in patriotic threads (including a top hat) that will serve as mascot for this year’s festival and future festivals as well. It also has a name that was selected by the citizens of Ellwood City–but only the Committee knows it for now. The mascot’s name will be revealed on July 2 at 4:30 PM.

To watch the full discussion about the 2022 Ellwood City Arts Festival, click on the Facebook feed below!