Uniontown holds annual Founding Day celebration
It was hot and muggy, and storms were on the horizon, but that didn’t stop festival-goers from celebrating Uniontown’s annual Founding Day Festival at Marshall Park on Saturday.
Uniontown shares its birthday with the United States – it was founded on July 4, 1775.
And Saturday’s birthday party was festive. Live music, a narrated trolley ride, horse-drawn carriage rides, and a classic car show, along with food trucks, artisan vendors, and children’s activities, drew residents and visitors to the festival, in its second season.
“The car show wrapped up a little bit early, but everything else went on as expected,” said Sharon Wallach, marketing director for the Herald-Standard, which organized the festival.
About 50 classic car enthusiasts brought their classic, antique, and specialty cars dating back to 1912, and attendees wandered among them, peering at the interiors, taking photos, and talking with the cars’ owners.
Terry Morgan of South Park brought his red 1960 Chevrolet Bel Ai. Morgan fully restored the tail-finned beauty.
People sat in folding chairs or sat in the grass to listen to the VFW Post 8543 Band play tunes ranging from the Battle Hymn of the Republic to Bette Midler’s “The Rose.”
The Fret Buzz Trio managed to take the stage at 2 p.m. as scheduled, undeterred by the rain.
New this year was a narrated trolley tour on an elegantly restored trolley harkens back to a bygone era. Narrator Bernie Quarrick, a 1966 graduate of North Union High School – now a part of the Laurel Highlands School District – who moved back to Uniontown after a 43-year career at National Geographic in Washington, D.C., led visitors on a 30-minute trek to 30 sites, including a two-story log cabin inn on Main Street where President George Washington once slept.
“There is a lot of history in Uniontown,” said Quarrick. “It’s a beautiful palace filled with history.”
John and Kathy Pechunka of Uniontown brought their seven-year old twin grandchildren, Jamison and Violet Parker, to the festival, and enjoyed the early afternoon participating in as many activities as they could, including riding in a wagon pulled by two Belgian mares.
“It’s a nice event. It’s a really good day. There’s a lot for them to do and we know a lot of people here, ” said Kathy Pechunka as the group headed toward a tent, where a friend was playing with the VFW Post 8543 Band.
In the children’s activity section, Billy Oleksik III, 9, or Uniontown, shot baskets at an inflatable basketball hoop while his siblings dashed to the other inflatable games.
“We’re doing it all,” said his mother, Ashley Marchezak of Uniontown, who was accompanied by her mom, Vicky Weselowsky of Masontown. “It’s great. Next, we’re getting food from the food truck. This is a good way for the kids to spend their day, instead of playing on an Ipad.”
The festival serves as a fundraiser for the Marshall Park Rejuvenation Fund.
The green expanse, across the street from the Uniontown Public Library, is a gem, and Wallach said the money raised from the festival will go toward several enhancements, including the installation of a stage at the park.
“It’s a real community event,” said Wallach. “We have local bands and local vendors, we have the police department and the fire department here, the radio station is here, so it’s a community event. People who have been coming throughout the day are really excited about everything that’s going on. We’re all working together to make this a great event.”
The day concluded with a fireworks display sponsored by the Fayette Chamber of Commerce.