Crowds Come for Candy, Apple Pie
Published: Friday, September 22, 2023
As the parade commemorating the Nappanee Apple Festival neared the center of town, children began cheering, "The candy is coming!"
And it did come. A plethora of suckers, Skittles, chocolates and Smarties flew through the air last Saturday morning in celebration. As the treats were mid-air, a near stampede hurdled toward the sweets as they skittered across the road and into the bags of the eager youths. Crowds lined the streets from the corner of Miriam and Market streets and filled the sidewalks through downtown Nappanee, pressing into the street.
Through the chaos the parade marched proudly, led by festival director Donna Persing and other committee members.
Agriculture gave a strong presence at the Nappanee Apple Festival during the parade last Saturday morning. Several groups, including NorthWood FFA, Echoes of the Past, Northern Indiana Johnny Poppers, Nappanee Power from the Past and Blooms on Main Street, reminded festival-goers that this festival has its roots in farming.
An individual entry by James Buss won first prize in the floats competition.
Buss entered two fully restored Allis-Chalmers tractors into the competition, winning first prize for tractors in the parade. His nephew and great nephew, Brian and Ben Buss, drove the collection during the procession, which began at 10:30 a.m. with a flyover.
Kosciusko County's antique tractor club, Echoes of the Past, landed a solid second in the tractor category, with several members sporting their machines in the parade.
NorthWood FFA won second place for its noncommercial float, which illustrated a farm scene complete with a Holstein cow and a row of corn. Coming in first was the NorthWood basketball team, riding in the original Huskers bus from the movie, "Hoosiers." The team, which won the state finals last year, hopes to compete for another title in 2024.
Blooms on Main Street sported a float full of flowers, coming in first place in its category.
Also in first place was the Nappanee Public Library, which creatively transformed a car into an apple that was complete with a book worm.
Second place floats, in addition to Echoes of the Past and Northwood FFA, were Gracie Jiu-Jitsu Nappanee and Jack Jackson's 1956 Chevy 210 series.
Throughout the day, several activities ensued, including the performances by Mike Hemmelgarn, a comedy juggler and ventriloquist and the XPOPO stunt team, featuring Dan Mahony, Henry Cabelus and Harry White. Mahoney is the inventor of several pogo stick stunts and Cabelus and White both hold world records in stunts, including the most back flips landed on a pogo stick.
Other activities included: the Donut Dash, Napple Baking Contest, a car show, antique tractor and engine shows, a cornhole tournament, the Wings and Wheels car and airplane show, silly safaris, a tractor pull, apple peeling contest, pie eating contest, goldfish races, performances by Carlie's Angels, Exit 41, the Grandpa Cratchet Kids Show and Puppets, the Everly Boys, and more.
Grand marshals and inventors of the 7-foot apple pie, Ron and Glenna Telschow, were excited to see everyone out enjoying the mild weather and slew of activities in Nappanee. Their favorite part of the festival is to see all the people and, of course, the pie.
"It's a very big honor," Glenna said when asked how she felt about being named grand marshal. Ron nodded his agreement.
The two have been a part of the Nappanee Apple Festival for over 60 years, and their legacy has made a permanent presence in the world's largest apple pie promotion. They look forward to years to come.
The 2024 Nappanee Apple Festival will be held Sept. 19-22.
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