Sen. Darren Bailey takes a selfie with a young supporter | Facebook
Sen. Darren Bailey takes a selfie with a young supporter | Facebook
Gubernatorial candidate Sen. Darren Bailey (R-Louisville) celebrated Labor Day by attending various parades and festivals.
"We kicked off Labor Day weekend with parades in Orion and Kewanee! It was great to see everyone who came out for these parades. We had a blast!" Bailey posted on Facebook.
The Hog Festival was held in Kewanee over Labor Day Weekend with a parade held on Sept. 3. The 2022 theme was “NEVER Can Say Goodbye!”
The first Annual Kewanee Hog Days Pig Plop fundraiser was held on Sept. 6 at the event. In the Pig Plop, 1,800 rubber pigs were dropped from the sky onto a target with the three closest to the bullseye winning prizes.
"If the one you've adopted (from earlier) lands closest to the Boars-eye, YOU'RE A WINNER! Minimum prize giveaway...$500.00. It may end up being more!" the details of the event read.
The Hog Festival was first held nearly seven decades ago. It was "on Saturday, September 20, 1947, after the USDA had declared officially that Henry County was the "top hog" so to speak in America when it came to pork production, Kewanee, being the largest community in the County, took upon itself to mark the occasion by holding the very first ever 'Hog Day.' The special day included a barrow show...a public showing of the best hogs in this area. Pens were set up in the 200 block of North Tremont Street in the heart of Kewanee's business district with over 150 swine shown by area farmers," kewaneehogdays.com noted.
"A lot of fairs and festivals - especially in small towns - have died out over the years, and we've had ours going strong since 1954," Mike Komnick, Kewanee Hog Days co-chairperson, told WQAD-TV. "Just keeping that drive and keeping that momentum - that just makes me proud every year."
Alerts Sign-up