The Litchfield Old Settlers Picnic will celebrate farming through the ages Friday, July 10, through Sunday, July 12.
The celebration begins Friday with the dessert contest. Entries should be dropped off at the Winters Building by 4 p.m. Age groups for the contest are 16 and under and 17 and up. Afterward, the desserts will be served at the firemen’s BBQ from 5 to 7 p.m. at the Winters Building. From 6:30 to 8 p.m., the Litchfield Rockin’ Kids 4-H Club will sponsor the ice cream social at the Christian church.
The pickleball tournament will start at 6 p.m. in the park. It is a $20 entry with only 16 spots available. To reserve your spot, email [email protected]. They will have paddles available, and the winner takes home half the pot. At 8 p.m. is the poker run with registration at 7:30 p.m. at Loup Valley Ag. To end the day is the fireworks show at 10 p.m.
On Saturday, Rose & Co Coffee will be set up on Main Street starting at 8 a.m. The parade starts at 10:30 a.m., led by the kids’ parade. Registration and check-in will be at the school. Following the parade is fun in the park, including inflatable water slides, a dunk tank, and kids’ activities. At 1 p.m. are the horseshoe and cornhole tournaments. There is a $20 entry fee for each tournament with a cash payout to the first-place teams. At 2 is the free throw contest for ages 15 and under, and at 3 is the turtle races.
Smokin’ on South Main BBQ is at 6:30 p.m. at a new location, the football field. Presale tickets are available at P&D Market or Town & Country Bank for $20 for adults and $10 for kids ages 6-12. Tickets at the gate will be $25 for adults. Kids 5 and under get in free. Andrew Reynolds, Litchfield Community Club member, explained that the reason for the move was to get out of the sun.
“Our biggest issue we find every year is the heat…So we will be having it at the football field this year. We have a lot of room to park cars. We’ll have the entire football field that we can set up to eat. You know there are trees everywhere, so it should be a fantastic location,” stated Reynolds.
At 8 p.m. is trivia at the ball field for teams with a maximum of 6 teammates. Finally, at 10 p.m. is the glow ladder ball tournament.
Sunday begins with the sand volleyball tournament at 9 a.m. Concessions will be provided by the Litchfield Rockin’ Kids 4-H Club. At 10 a.m. are the firemen’s water fights on Main Street. The Dads, Lads, and Lassies Trap Shoot is at 1:30, and the final event of the celebration is Church in the park at 6:30 p.m. During the non-denominational church service, live music will be performed by Undivided Devotion.
Andrew Reynolds encourages everyone to come and enjoy the weekend in Litchfield.
“Yeah, that’s the joy we take in. Just watching everybody enjoy it and seeing the smiles on people’s faces. Getting to see people I haven’t seen maybe since last year’s Old Settlers. The whole community coming together is really what it’s about,” said Reynolds.
For more information about Old Settlers, go to the Litchfield Community Club Facebook page or contact Andrew Reynolds at (308) 440-4899.
