Olympia Community Festival
By Rachel Haynie

One of the corporate sponsors for the inaugural Olympia Community Festival is Crescendo, a new advertising and design firm whose principal Melissa Ligon is an Olympia neighbor. Cresendo designed the striking logo for the festival.

The upcoming Olympia Community Festival April 21, 2007, was merely an idea shared by pastors in the close- knit former mill village. Collaborating are ministers from Green Street United Methodist Church, Whaley Street United Methodist Church, Southside Baptist Church, and St. Luke's Lutheran Church

Their goal to enhance neighborhood unity took hold and blossomed. Now it has been embraced also by the City of Columbia. In its expanded configuration, the festival concept includes activities, tours, and a purposeful opportunity to take in some of the neighborhood's points of interest.

All festival activities will take place on the Commons in front of the Olympia Mill. Throughout the day live bands will perform on a main stage. Around the stage perimeter, food venders, craftsmen, and artisans will be displaying and selling their wares.

Games especially for children will add to the family atmosphere of the first- time event.

Those who purchase wristbands will be able to tour the Vulcan Quarry. Tour will be every 30 minutes. Other things on the tour include an apartment in the renovated Granby Mills, selected homes in the community and a cockaboose made into a home.

No wristbands are needed to tour Olympia Park or the Olympia Cemetery. The graves date as early as 1900 and as recent as 2007. Open, with docents to share information, are century- old houses of worship. Festival day will also be ideal for exploring the Granby River Walk, part of the Three Rivers Greenway project.

The day of the festival has been planned so that participants may take a closer look at Olympia's points of interest, often missed when passing by in cars. Among them are the World War I Doughboy statue set in the median perpendicular to the mills, and The "Rock", an old painted railroad trestle, now a part of the Three Rivers Greenway.

701 Whaley Street, originally the community building and general store for the mill village is now being adapted for reuse as retail space and office lofts. Throughout the day Cork Ball demonstrations will be in progress at Jaco's Tavern, founded in 1912.

The festival has been designed to appeal to a wide range of age groups from young children and teens to college students, young professionals, families, and long- time residents.

The executive festival committee includes Richard Burts, Bob Davis, Sally Davis, Larry Gates, and Jim Jaco.

For more information contact the Rev. Noble Miller, Whaley Street United Methodist Church as 920-8887.