Press Releases / News
Betty Zane Days Festival Promises Family Fun in Martins Ferry
Thursday, July 25, 2024
Photo Caption: Betty Zane Days Festival organizers, Martins Ferry VFD Chief II Justin Smith, Lieutenant Austin DeLeonardis, Unified Retail Banking Executive Stacy Carpino, Captain Justin Matz, Captain Todd Roberts, Chief I Ron Hilton
The Martins Ferry Volunteer Fire Department will host its Annual Betty Zane Days Festival from Wednesday, July 31, through Saturday, August 3, in the Martins Ferry City Park.
According to Fire Chief I, Ron Hilton, “The Festival will hit the ground running on Wednesday with our Annual 5K run/walk race. We are planning to have food concessions, craft vendors, family-friendly entertainment, including inflatables, rides, games, a cornhole tournament, musical entertainment, a parade, our annual fireman’s water battle, and fireworks.” “And, yes, we’ll have a beer garden,” Hilton added.
The annual 5K run/walk will occur at 6 p.m. on Wednesday, July 31. Those who wish to participate can pick up applications at Total Sports Connection or the high school.
“This is four days of fun for everyone,” said MFVFD Fire Chief II, Justin Smith. “The event is free to the public, but there will be a $10 fee for wristbands that get you into the rides and inflatables. The American Legion in Martins Ferry is sponsoring kid’s wristbands for a Saturday Matinee only. Wristbands can be obtained at the carnival,” Smith added.
The event’s main sponsor is Unified Bank. In addition to sponsoring the event, Unified will also sponsor the Annual Fireman’s Water Battle, which will be held on Fourth Street between Unified Bank and the MFVFD Ladder Station on Saturday, immediately after the Fireman’s Parade, and the Cornhole Tournament. Unified is providing cash prizes for 1st, 2nd, and 3rd places in the tournament.
The cornhole tournament will take place from 6:30-11 p.m. Friday, Aug. 2, next to the park. Registration for the tournament will take place from 5-6:30 p.m. There is a cost to participate; each player is guaranteed to play in four games. A blind draw will determine who will compete in each game. Players must bring their own bags.
Activities will take place in the City Park from 5-10 p.m. on July 31 and August 1; 5-11 p.m. Aug 2 and from noon to 5 p.m. and 6-11 p.m. on Aug 3. Musical entertainment will include The Russ Buchanan Band, Twice as Nice, Still Kickin, and Bedrock. The beer garden will be open evenings during the festival. There will be fireworks after dark on Saturday.
The annual festival is named after the heroine of Fort Henry, Elizabeth “Betty” Zane. The Betty Zane Days Festival commemorates Zane’s courageous act during the American Revolutionary War when she reportedly volunteered to retrieve gunpowder by braving enemy fire outside the fort in 1782. She was able to resupply the defenders of Fort Henry at the site of present-day Wheeling. Zane later married and moved to Martins Ferry, where she and several family members are buried at Walnut Grove Cemetery.
Schedule of events:
Wednesday, July 31st - 5k race; nightly entertainment is The Russ Buchanan Band
Thursday, August 1st - regular nightly events and the entertainment is Twice as Nice
Friday, August 2nd - regular nightly events; cornhole tournament; nightly entertainment is Still Kickin
Saturday, August 3rd - Firefighters parade through town, followed by the water battle in front of Unified Bank and the Ladder Station. There will also be regular nightly events, entertainment featuring Bedrock, and fireworks at dark. During the Matinee session of the day (morning hours), the American Legion Post in town will sponsor and pay for kids' bands.
Unified Bank is a full-service Member FDIC-insured, state-chartered commercial bank headquartered in Martins Ferry, OH and has eighteen locations that serve the Ohio counties of Athens, Belmont, Carroll, Fairfield, Harrison, Hocking, Jefferson and Tuscarawas and Marshall County in West Virginia. Unified Bank is the sole operating subsidiary of United Bancorp, Inc. (UBCP), a publicly-traded bank holding company, and has been serving the financial needs of the Ohio Valley since 1902 from its headquarters in Martins Ferry, Ohio.
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