Today is the main day of the “Live Your Legacy” Bell Tower Festival in Jefferson.

The morning activities include the Jefferson Firemen’s Breakfast from 6-10am at the fire station, along with the Ding Dong Dash at 8am, followed by the parade at 11am. The Jefferson Elks Lodge is serving hamburgers for $8 and hotdogs for $3 with coleslaw, baked beans, chips, lemonade and water from 11:30am-2pm. Elks Past Exalted Ruler Bill Berger says proceeds will go toward their building maintenance fund, as well as helping to qualify for grants from the national organization.

“We got $8,500 back from earlier this year that we donated in three different places in the county. An example is the Churdan Fire and Rescue. They got $2,500 to get a new AED (automatic external defibrillator) for their rescue because the one they had didn’t work anymore. So we got a grant for that for them. So it helped out.”  

The afternoon festivities include the 3-on-3 basketball and pickleball tournaments, the carnival opens at 12:30pm and there will be a touch-a-truck, which Bell Tower Festival Committee Chair Philip Heisterkamp explains what that is.

“You see the heroes of our community (including) fire trucks, police cars, ambulance, not to mention the big rigs, the farming equipment. You see those in the parade, this is just an opportunity for a family, a kid to get up in it, to touch it, get in the driver seat, see it up close.”   

An acrobat performance will happen at 1pm, along with the car show, a mobile escape room and wine tasting. The evening includes two musical performances from Exchange on the Eighth and Dirt Road Divide, at 7pm and 9pm, respectively. Additionally, Raccoon Valley Radio’s Big Red Radio is also broadcasting live today from 9am-6pm.