Families, area-residents or anyone looking for fun, free activities to do Friday, Aug. 25 through Sunday, Aug. 27 can head to Rainier for the annual Rainier Round-Up Days celebration. The weekend-long event includes a plethora of free, family-friendly activities for people to enjoy.
Parade
Participants in the annual Rainier Round-Up Days Parade can begin lining up at 9 a.m. on Saturday, Aug. 26 at the Rainier High School entrance on Minnesota Street. The parade will begin at 11 a.m. on the corner of Idaho and Binghampton and will go to Minnesota Street and Binghampton Street and feature a variety of floats and entries, according to Tami Justice with the City of Rainier.
“So far we have about 40 entrants, which is about normal. We usually have about 40 going into it, and end up with about 50,” Justice said. “We usually have a little bit of everything — political parties, animals, school athletic teams, a color guard. There’s a lot of representation.
“It’s definitely a community event that’s looked forward to every year,” Justice continued. “It’s nice to see the community come together on this day and to see all the smiling faces on the side of the road. There’s music playing, bands playing, and it’s a great day.”
Rainier City Councilor George Johnson said if anyone wants to enter the parade, they’re more than welcome. Johnson is a member of We Love Rainier, an organizer for the event.
“It’s a good community event. We try to make it more of an old-time feeling to it,” he said. “Some of these places can get slick with their event, but we’re just happy to be a little town out in the country that loves its people and loves the community.
“It should be a fun weekend for families. That’s what We Love Rainier’s goal is,” Johnson continued. “We want to create fun memories and events for families. We try to give these kids some memories that they can carry with them for the rest of their lives.
29th annual Bluegrass Festival
The 29th annual Bluegrass Festival is also scheduled for all three days at Wilkowski Park in Rainier. The OlyFed-sponsored event will feature a lineup of different activities, including an open mic from 2 p.m. to 7 p.m. on Friday, Aug. 25, live music from 2 p.m. to 5 p.m. and 6 p.m to 9 p.m. on Saturday. Aug. 26, and gospel music beginning at 9:30 a.m. on Sunday, Aug. 27.
“They do that every year. The festival started with the Lions. Then they went away, and we took it over to keep the tradition alive in the community,” Johnson said. “I remember the first bluegrass festival. It was over at the Sportsman Club. It started out small and it got bigger every year. Everyone does everything for free. They don’t charge. We don’t charge, and everyone comes and has a good time. It’s very relaxed and creates a good atmosphere.”
According to the event’s website, bands slated to perform include Wolf Mountain Band, Lewis County Pickers, the Dills Family, Roosevelt Road, Band of Friends and Plomosa Road.
Wiener Dog Races
Immediately following the parade, the annual Wiener Dog Races will take place behind Rainier City Hall. The activity is expected to begin at 12:30 p.m.
“That’s a really popular event every year. It seems to attract more and more people every year,” Justice said. “This year in addition to the wiener dog races, there will also be a cornhole tournament at noon. There’s a lot going on. It’s immediately following the parade. A rectangular course is set up, and the dogs run from one end of the box to the other.”
Justice added that participants can typically show up with their dogs at the race location to enter in the competition following their parade.
Pie Baking Contest
We Love Rainier is hosting a pie-baking contest following the parade on Saturday, Aug. 26. Participants are asked to pre-register and only enter shelf stable pies, which excludes cream pies. Participants can enter more than one type of pie, and judging will be done blindly by five judges.
All pies must be presented by noon on Saturday, Aug. 26 at Wilkowski Park, and entry forms can be picked up at Rainier City Hall, Rainier Senior Center, Turner Automotive, Olde Town Park or virtually by emailing weloverainierwa@gmail.com with the participant’s name, phone number and pie type.
Physical copies of entry forms can be mailed to P.O. box 67, Rainier, WA, 98576. Participants are asked to submit a copy of their recipe if they’re willing to share it with the public.
“The judging will be between noon and 1 p.m. at Wilkowski Park, and then we’ll auction off the pies. We do three different school drives. We do dictionaries, and this year we’re doing a HUGS drive. Hats, underwear, gloves, socks,” Johnson said. “Sometimes kids don’t have clean clothes or come to school wet, so we’re trying to come up with some stuff so kids can start their day off right.”
Johnson added that whatever money they raise will benefit different drives done in Rainier, such as the upcoming clothing drive or the future school supply drive in January.
Corn Hole Tournament
An inaugural cornhole fundraiser tournament is also taking place during Rainier Round-Up Days weekend, and funds raised from the event will benefit Rainier High School athletics.
The event will begin at 12:30 p.m. on Saturday, Aug. 26 next to Rainier City Hall and costs $15 per-person to enter. The event is a blind draw, round-robin and single-elimination style of tournament. Prizes will also be awarded to the top finishing teams.
“I think it’s great. We support our schools at all of our events,” Johnson said. “Some of the other groups will be at the Rainier Saturday Market selling strawberry shortcake to raise money for athletic clubs, as well. We all feel like this is an important cause because we feel these kids should have a fair opportunity to compete.”
Street Dance
On Friday, Aug. 25, there will be a street dance beginning at 6 p.m. at Holiday Park. The event will feature live music from the Steel Horses. The street dance is sponsored by Signature Service Real Estate and Turner Automotive.
“Last year’s dance was a huge success, with participants requesting the dance to be an annual event,” We Love Rainier’s Robbi Currey said.
The dance will be held in the center of Rainier at Holiday Park and will go from 6 p.m. to 10 a.m. The street next to Rainier City Pizza and Burgers will be shut down to traffic and The Steel Horse band with its collection of rock ‘n’ roll songs and some country songs will have people tapping their feet.
“It’s really laid back, people just show up, and they can bring their lawn chair or blanket to sit in the grass,” Currey said. “It’s for all ages.”
Need For Volunteers
We Love Rainier WA does many events, including Rainier Round-up Days, and community services during the year and is always looking for volunteers.
“There’s a lot of people behind the scenes. It’s a total group effort. We have a great group at We Love Rainier that makes these events happen,” Johnson continued. “Some even spend their own money to make these events happen. It’s extremely rewarding to see the community support these events and show up for us. We appreciate the community we’re in.”
Those interested can go to the We Love Rainier Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/groups/593391727695492/. Monthly meetings are at 6 p.m. the first Thursday of each month at the Rainier Senior Center. They are open to the public.
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Brandon Hansen also contributed to this story for the Nisqually Valley News.
