As part of Festival South’s 14th season, officials from the Town of Sumrall are partnering with that event to host the second annual Sumrall Royal Celebration, which will give children the opportunity to feel like kings and queens for a day.
The event, which will feature games, refreshments and arts, will be held from 10 a.m.-1 p.m. June 24 at Beam Park, located at the intersection of Mississippi 589 and Columbia Avenue in Sumrall.
“Festival South started and focused for a number of years within Hattiesburg, but over the last several years they’ve been reaching out to communities outside of Hattiesburg proper to involve more folks,” Mayor Joel Lofton said. “(They want to) provide more opportunities for children, more families, to be exposed to the arts.
“So they approached us last year through Sid Gonsoulin, a friend that works with Festival South; he retired from Southern Miss, and he called and asked if we would be interested in hosting an event. Children are invited to come out in their royal costumes – but that’s not required – and some costumes will be made available.”
Participants will be able to enjoy “a magical land of creativity and music,” with live music, art activities, story time and more.
“It’s just a good time for the kids,” Lofton said. “Most of the events are designed for children.”
Later in the day, after a little “royal treatment,” participants can head down the hill to the next event, the Jordan Thomas Dream Big Foundation Community Fun Day. That event will be held from 10 a.m.-4 p.m. in the downtown area near Lincoln Park Ministries, and will provide an opportunity for the community to celebrate the success that has come from the Sumrall area.
“We hope a lot of families will come to the Royal Celebration, then they’ll make their way down the hill to the community day with the Thomas foundation,” Lofton said. “It is a family-friendly event with food and children’s activities, and I believe they might have vendors.”
Lofton said the first Sumrall Royal Celebration was a huge success, and officials are hoping for a repeat of that for this year.
“Last year was super,” he said. “We had a great turnout; I don’t remember the exact number of kids that showed that day, but we had a great turnout.
“Everyone seemed to enjoy it, so we expect to have another awesome day this year.”
