WASCO, Calif. (KERO) — Historically the weekend after Labor Day is reserved for the Wasco Rose Festival, a long-standing event featuring various community-led organizations coming together to celebrate the city.
- The Wasco Rose Festival is an amalgamation of events put together by the community, for the community. Events like the Wasco Rose Festival, the Parade, the 'Stop and Smell the Roses' reception, and a pancake breakfast will all return for another year.
- 23ABC spoke with several members affiliated with the festival and its various events who noted the times and the festival have changed, but there's a sense of tradition and community resolve that comes alive when the festival fires up.
- Details on the festival and the related events can be found on the Wasco Rose Festival Facebook Page.
BROADCAST TRANSCRIPT:
If you're heading north on Highway 43 into Wasco, you pass by this sign on my left shoulder and you probably don't give it much thought, well now is the time to give it some thought. We're almost to the weekend after Labor Day. I'm Sam Hoyle, your Wasco neighborhood reporter. Though the festival may look a little bit different than it was decades ago, when this sign was put up, that doesn't mean the people putting it together are any less passionate.
23ABC spoke with several people who have been around and seen the festival then and now and when asked what makes the event special for the community? Many of them said it was the tradition surrounding the festival, the ability to bring the community together in various forms, and Wasco's long-rooted history with roses that can be seen all over the city.
"The Rose Festival itself is tradition at its finest, I remember as a child being involved in the parade, in the festival. My father worked for the rose company, he worked for Jackson and Perkins. So I remember making the floats," said Liz Gerber.
The festival features a variety of events like the Miss Wasco Rose Queen pageant, the parade, the 'stop and smell the roses reception' and much more hosted by a variety of organizations from around the community. It's that sense of community across the area that drives the festival to be what it is, whether you're from Wasco, or nine miles south.
"Shafter and Wasco, we may have our rivalry, and stuff like that, but honestly, we have a big sense of community in these two small towns and a lot of people have family and it's a great day to get out," said Alexiz Brown, Rose Festival Casino Night Committee Member.
As the times have changed, so has Wasco and the festival. People 23ABC spoke with noted, that you may not see nearly as many roses around the area, and the festival may look different, but the festival's committee hopes to draw more people and more organizations into the fold, to keep growing the festival year after year.
"Right now, the task is to get more people involved, that's our focus and get more people at the park, get more venues and people involved and the schools -- we want the elementary, we want the junior high, we want the high school, the continuation, we want them all,"
The Wasco Rose Festival, a three-day event starting on September 5th, and running until the 7th. You can find more information about the festival and all the events between the three days in this story on our website. In Wasco I'm Sam Hoyle, your neighborhood reporter.
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