Roaring success of Spring Chicken Festival guarantees it’ll keep on cluckin’

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It was billed as the First Annual Spring Chicken Festival, a name most wordsmiths would agree is misleading — given that technically, there’s no such thing as “first annual,” since an event can’t be “annual” until the second one comes around.

No matter.

The roaring success of the “first” Spring Chicken Festival in downtown Siler City on Saturday — the rebirth of a once-major event which gave a nod to the impact of the poultry industry on the town — guarantees a second and, we hope, many, many more to come.

Annual?

No question about it.

From the time the event officially began at 10 a.m. on Saturday until the combination of the heat and the appearance of storm clouds on the horizon led some vendors to begin tearing down their booths about an hour before the advertised closing time of 6 p.m., Chatham Avenue was thick with people.

The Siler City Parks and Recreation Department, the event’s organizer, estimated 5,000 people were there. If you were among them, you might have guessed higher, given the density of the crowd. The huge attendance contributed significantly to the mood, as did the absence of rain, the abundance of all kinds of great grub, superb music and the enthusiasm that comes with being a part of something special.

“We never expected 5,000 people,” Siler City Parks and Recreation Director Joseph Keel told the News + Record. “Now we know that we only see the event is going to grow. We see people planning their high school reunions, their family reunions around the Spring Chicken Festival.”

Keel said the festival was a “much-needed” event that gave a boost to Siler City, and thanks to the generosity of sponsor Mountaire Farms, and the tireless work of those on Keel’s staff, it came off without a hitch.

So well, in fact, that on Monday morning, Keel and his team were nearly overwhelmed with voice mail messages and calls of congratulations — followed, of course, by a department meeting that included planning the 2020 version of the event.

The 2nd annual (yes, we can say it) Spring Chicken Festival is scheduled for next May 2. Keel promises it’ll be bigger and better.

It’ll be hard to improve upon the inaugural event, but somehow we have no doubt he’ll be proven right.